The full tracklist for Eminem’s upcoming album The Death of Slim Shady has been revealed, and it contains a follow-up to a controversial song. While fans of the real Slim Shady worry over whether his next album could really mark his last and Hotties get ready to take him down over his Megan Thee Stallion lyrics, Apple Music dropped the official tracklist to The Death of Slim Shady earlier today (July 10).
Eminem – real name Marshall Mathers – shared the cover art for the album on Twitter yesterday (9 July). It features the rapper’s face poking out of a partially unzipped body bag – but does this mean the Slim Shady will be going to his resting place and leaving the world of music for good, or is his face poking out a sign of hope for fans?
We’ll have to wait to find out about that one, but in the meantime, Apple Music has released the names of all 19 tracks on the album – which includes a sequel to a track Eminem first released in 1999.
First up in the album is ‘Renaissance,’ followed by ‘Habits,’ ‘Trouble,’ ‘Brand New Dance,’ ‘Evil,’ ‘All You Got (skit),’ ‘Lucifer,’ ‘Antichrist,’ ‘Fuel,’ ‘Road Rage,’ ‘Houdini,’ ‘Breaking News (skit),’ ‘Guilty Conscience 2,’ ‘Head Honcho,’ ‘Temporary,’ ‘Bad One,’ ‘Tobey,’ ‘Guess Who’s Back (skit)’ and ‘Somebody Save Me’.
And it’s the track ‘Guilty Conscience 2′ which has really piqued fans’ interest, particularly given just how controversial the first of its kind – titled ‘Guilty Conscience’ – was at the time.
Why? Well, released on 8 June 1999, the track sees Eminem and Dr. Dre take on the roles of the angel and devil on someone’s shoulder – or good and evil conscience. Some of the topics which came up on the devil’s side of the rap – despite them being framed as the bad part of the conscience – didn’t sit well with fans.
Not only did some take issue with the reference in the song to Dr. Dre assaulting fellow rapper Dee Barnes, but one fan took to DJBooth in 2017 noting the song was ‘almost unlistenable playing it now with Eminem’s particular voice advocating for such things as rape of an unconscious woman and multiple murders’. Another listener also took the song to exemplify that ‘the coldly-calculated-to-offend alter ego considers date rape’.
The controversy surrounding the tune doesn’t end there either.
In September 2003, 70-year-old Harlene Stein filed a lawsuit against Eminem and Dr. Dre accusing them of using an unauthorized sample of a song ‘Pigs Go Home’. ‘Pigs Go Home’ was a song written for a film her late husband, Ronald Stein, created called Getting Straight and Harlene claimed he wasn’t paid royalties nor even credited for the alleged use. However, ultimately, the suit was later dismissed in 2004.
Now with Eminem set to release a sequel to the hit, conversation around the song has exploded again. One Twitter user wrote: “I was listening to Guilty Conscience just last night thinking a Eminem VS Slim Shady would be really perfect. Glad they are doing a Pt2.” “Guilty conscience in 2024 prob my most anticipated track !!” another added. And a third resolved: “Eminem is dropping guilty conscience 2 on his new album the world is not ready for this.”
So, what do you think?