Eminem, legendary Detroit rapper, you know him good and well, the “Rap God” is back with his 10th full-length album (a surprise album, mind you), and a very quick follow-up to his 2017 album “Revival.” That record didn’t really strike the note it had intended to and was ultimately seen by many Eminem fans and many critics as one of his weakest projects, especially after 2013’s “The Marshall Mathers LP 2” which received some pretty solid reviews. It seems like Eminem really took some of the negative reception into account when he released the “Chloraseptic (Remix)” with 2 Chainz and PHresher, where he clapped back at some of the people that seemed to form their verdict on the album based on the track listing, as well as the overuse of pop features. He also was featured on Nicki Minaj’s latest album on the track “Majesty” which, even if I didn’t love the song itself, Eminem’s verse on it was possibly one of his fastest, and at 10.3 syllables per second, it even managed to outdo the insanity that was “Rap God.”
Now, I’m sure you guys may remember the shitstorm that “Revival” received upon its release, so I don’t have to talk much more about what others said about it. For me, you may remember that I was slightly nicer to the album than most others were, even going so far as to rate it an “Okay,” but honestly, given that Eminem is one of my favorite rappers and one that I’ve always had so much respect for, he’s someone that, quite frankly, should not be getting “Okay” ratings. And even now, while I still go back to some tracks off of “Revival,” I do think even some of my “favorites” from the album have grown away from me. Thus, I can definitely say I was let down by the project. However, after hearing Eminem on the “Chloraseptic (Remix)” and “Majesty,” I feel like he came prepared on those tracks and, given all the accusations of him “losing his fire” and “falling off,” I feel like those tracks showed me that Eminem can still go ham whenever he wants to. They also showed that no matter what anyone says, the man still has that fire in him. And with an album title like “Kamikaze,” I definitely expect to hear Em go in on this one, instead of taking a more introspective (and somewhat political) approach as he did on “Revival.” Let’s take a look at see if the fire is back:
The Ringer: Wasting no time here, Eminem calls out all of his haters and all the people doubting that he could really “go ham” on a track. He really does on this one. The beat and instrumentation are somewhat minimal, but it’s suitably cold, and Eminem’s flow and lyricism definitely feel like a step up after “Revival.” He mixes a number of different styles here, from rapid-fire flow to some more start-stop cadences, but he makes it all work, and he also comes through with some really clever bars on this thing. Yes, there are a few that are bound to raise a few eyebrows, and I’m sure some might even hear him and think he’s being stubborn towards the very valid criticisms of “Revival,” but I actually like some of his callouts to Lil Yachty, Lil Pump and Lil Xan, and how he basically says he’s willing to diss any modern-day rapper not named Joyner Lucas, Kendrick Lamar, J Cole or Big Sean. It shows here that he definitely has his fire back, and it’s a really solid start to the album.
Greatest: Em continues to brag on this one about how he is the best lyrical rapper in the game, and he also uses some of the flows from other rappers, from “HUMBLE.” by Kendrick Lamar to “wokeuplikethis*” by Playboi Carti and Lil Uzi Vert. The song itself definitely helps prove why Em’s sees himself in such a high standard: the production hits hard, with a lot of energy that meshes well with Eminem’s flow, and once again, his performance on this one is very confident and filled with really great cadences and clever bars, like when he refers to the “controversy” where he mispronounced Die Antwoord’s name for the sake of a rhyme. It’s a very cold track, and Eminem shows on it that he’s not playing around. Really great cut!
Lucky You (feat. Joyner Lucas): Ditching the pop features in favor of more hip-hop leaning features, Em brings in Joyner Lucas (who you may recognize from the very viral hit “I’m Not Racist”) to talk about his underdog lifestyle, while Em himself discusses his high status and position in the industry. It’s an interesting juxtaposition, and the production is very chilly and sinister, with very eerie bells meshing with a very energetic trap-drum beat. Joyner’s rapid-fire flow and performance is hard-hitting and convincing, and Eminem’s extremely fast flow and call-outs to the recent wave of “Soundcloud rappers” and their comments on a lot of rappers that helped pave the way for them (think when Lil Xan called 2Pac’s music “boring” or when Kodak Black tried to say he was “better than 2Pac and Biggie”) helped make the song even harder. You can’t tell me Em wasn’t listening to the negative comments on “Revival” here, he’s going the hell in with this one, and he’s bringing Joyner Lucas with him, which only makes the song better.
Paul - Skit: A short skit where Eminem receives a message from his manager Paul Rosenberg, this one sees Paul basically saying that he’s not sure if it’s good for Em to make an album as a response to the people hating on his recent works, and asks whether or not it means he will make a “Kamikaze 2” album in the future. It’s short, but it’s funny enough, and it definitely feels like something Eminem would put on one of his albums.
Normal: Em talks on this track about the relationships he’s had, and basically asks why none of his girlfriends can be normal. Looks like Kim’s not staying off anyone’s mind anytime soon. The production is a bit lighter on here, and Eminem’s lyrics are very dark and angry on this one. I love his different flows and the energy that he brings to the song is fantastic as always. Unfortunately, I do think the song lyrically doesn’t quite fit with the theme of the album, and some of those lyrics are a bit too dark (I know dark lyrics are nothing new for Em, but that doesn’t make them any better). It’s definitely not a bad cut, but I can say it’s most certainly not for me. I don’t know though, maybe it will grow on me with some repeat listens.
Em Calls Paul - Skit: Continuing from the last track, Em basically responds to Paul’s questions about what he plans to do with all of the people saying negative things about him and “Revival,” and he basically claims that he’s going to the house of some Yahoo blogger who wrote negatively on him. Honestly, I’m fine with clapping back, but if you’re gonna go to someone’s house because they wrote bad things about you on Yahoo…can I call that desperation? Ehh, that's probably the joke. Still, the skit works well enough, given what Eminem is going for, even if it’s a bit silly.
Stepping Stone: Something of a more sad track, Em talks on this one about his former group D12, the soured relationships of the group after Proof’s death, and Em’s own blame for that. When the song started, I’m not gonna lie, I thought that an ad for a cartoon was playing. That’s not the case, it’s actually just a sample of "All These Things" by Mario Resto. Said sample is actually really great, and it gives the song something of an old-school feel. Em’s performance is hard, while also having a bit of emotional edge to it, and with this song, it feels like Em is fixing two of the biggest problems I had with “Revival” when I listened to it: the production, as I said before, is far better, and the hook is WAY better here. This is easily one of the strongest tracks on the album, I really love it!
Not Alike (feat. Royce Da 5’9”): Having a little fun on this one, Eminem kind of mocks some of the artists involved in modern-day rap, notably Tay Keith (the producer of BlocBoy JB) and Migos (by mimicking the flow of “Bad and Boujee”) while also enlisting the help of Royce Da 5’9”. So essentially, this is Bad Meets Evil right here, legitimately being “bad” and “evil.” Sweet. And the production is very fun in how it mocks “Look Alive” while remaining energetic and hard-hitting. Royce da 5’9” comes through with really great flow (I also love the line where he says that today’s “Soundcloud rappers” sound like their songs were inspired by Dr. Seuss), and Em goes hard on his verse, not only dissing the “Soundcloud rappers” but also dissing Machine Gun Kelly on the song. Em’s really taking no prisoners on this one, and he’s proving that he can still stick around with the bests in the rap game. Literally, wow. Just wow.
Kamikaze: Here, Eminem kind of mocks his song “Fack” and also talks about how 2017 didn’t really work out well for him, with “Revival” not being all that well-received and all that. I love the kind of old-school production on this one, and Em’s flow as always is top-notch, as he switches things up and brings a lot of variance on this cut with his different flows. His performance and energy are strong as well, and while I wasn’t initially all that into the hook, it definitely grew on me as I continued to listen. And I also like how Em goes back into the mindset of “not giving a fuck” with his lyrics on this one, and that helps everything come together to make this a really great song. There’s not much else I can say with this song without just feeling like I’m gushing about the track, so just know that I really enjoy it.
Fall: Em promises that he won’t fall off on this track, as he talks about the negative reception to “Revival,” discusses the modern state of hip-hop music, and even brings in Justin Vernon of Bon Iver to help out. I like the very chilly, ethereal production, the autotune-assisted vocals from Justin Vernon are very lovely and the melodies are very catchy and ear-wormy. And even though a few of Em’s lyrics might end up being a bit controversial here (I’m personally not too fond of him using the word “f*ggot,” even if he tried to censor it), I think this has some of his hardest bars yet, as he calls out pretty much every modern rapper that he possibly can in the song’s allotted time. He also does so with a lot of confidence, pulling the typical Eminem style of just throwing out lines while keeping the middle-finger held high. I can see how this song might be controversial in some corners, but I really like it!
Nice Guy (feat. Jessie Reyez): A rather tongue-in-cheek song that seems to paint Eminem as something of a “nice guy,” the song also features an artist name Jessie Reyez. Jessie’s vocals throughout the chorus and verses seem to be really fractured and irregular here, switching from a lower register to some filtered, very high-pitched singing. It’s very unconventional, but it fits well with the very minimal, percussion-led production. Eminem’s flow is really strong as well on this one, and I like his energy on his performance as well. I do think the song ends just a little too soon, and it does feel just a little out of place with the rest of the album, but it’s still a pretty decent cut all things considered.
Good Guy (feat. Jessie Reyez): A continuation of the last track, this one takes things a little bit faster and more upbeat, though it has something of an old-school feel to it. Em’s flow is really fun and, even if he’s not rapid-firing on this one, his performance is very bouncy and charismatic on this one. Jessie Reyez’s vocals at the end of the song help to round it out very nicely as well, as her strong ear for catchy melodies is on full display here. Admittedly, even though the song is once again very short, I think this one is more fulfilling than the last and it’s a really memorable cut.
Venom - Music From The Motion Picture: Ending the album off, Em gives us what appears to be the main track for the upcoming Marvel film “Venom.” The production does feel just a little bit “studio-produced,” like you can tell it was obviously made for the film and less so to stand on its own, but Em still comes through with some very solid, personal lyrics and great flow on this one. Even so, beyond the somewhat “studio-produced” production, I also think that the hook on this is one of the clumsier ones on the album. I feel like Em mostly just included the track for the sake of marketing the movie or something along those lines because I definitely think it’s one of the weaker tracks on the album, and I definitely think it’s an unfortunately poor closer to the album.
Even though that Venom song wasn’t really all that good, this album was damn great. Em, wow. I get that the negative reception to “Revival” must’ve stung, but holy shit, dude. You went in on everyone on here, from the Soundcloud rappers to the non-Soundcloud modern rappers to my harmless grandma to my cousin’s dog to someone’s pet goldfish…okay, I’m taking it too far, but this is the Em I think we’ve all been waiting for. Everyone has asked for Em to get livid and to ill out on an album, and he did that and more here. His performances and flows are extremely confident and indicative that Em still has plenty to offer as an artist, but most importantly, I think he cleaned up on a number of the problems I personally had with “Revival,” by making the production more chilly and hard-hitting (thank Dr. Dre for that), creating more catchy and interesting hooks, and cutting down on the length to a degree. After the hour-long slog of “Revival,” it’s nice to see that Em cut out a bit of the filler and kept this one at a respectable 46 minutes. And where “Revival” didn’t seem to have one solid, consistent theme going throughout, I appreciate that Em kept this project more focused and, overall, more interesting. I think he came through with what he really wanted to make, and it hit really hard. With “Revival,” Em was called into question and received some very fair criticisms. With “Kamikaze,” Em proved that he is still a “Rap God,” and that he really does rap better when the odds are stacked against him.
Favorite tracks: The Ringer, Greatest, Lucky You, Stepping Stone, Not Alike, Fall, Kamikaze, Good Guy
Least favorite tracks: Normal, Venom - Music From The Motion Picture
Rating: Excellent
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