Eminem’s “The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grace)”: Review

Slim Shady has been trying to insult us for 25 years now, and Eminem’s loudest alter ego continues to party like it’s 1999 while his audience waits for the man Marshall Mathers to grow up. The title of Em’s new album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce), gave rise to hope that he could finally bury Slim Shady and move on.

That’s not quite what happens – although Eminem tries half-heartedly – and on the way Death of Slim Shady becomes a boring mess of weak puns, outdated references, and desperate attempts to get “canceled” by anyone, please.

Here are seven observations about Eminem’s The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce).

01. Chicken coop

The concept of The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce) is told in a series of skits in which Eminem plays two characters, Marshall Mathers and Slim Shady, both of whom are unlikable to varying degrees. Early on, Slim kidnaps Marshall, and for the first two-thirds of the album, this Shady character tries to stir up the same old controversies that Eminem has been provoking since his debut, with plenty of crude jokes about women, the disabled, and members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Eminem comments throughout on how Slim’s controversies have made Marshall rich. “I gave you everything,” he has Slim Shady say in “All You Got (Sketch).” And “Guilty Conscience 2” dramatizes a fight between the two that ends with Mathers shooting Shady at point blank range – the Coup de grace of the title.

But by this point, the Slim Shady character already dominates the album. He’s trying to make the best of both worlds, not letting his worst character die until Slim Shady can make him a profit. That might work, but it’s artistic cowardice.

02. Beats by Dre or Close Enough

Dr. Dre is credited as the producer of two songs: “Lucifer” and “Road Rage.” For the rest, Eminem and longtime collaborator Luis Resto rely on the same minor-key loop synth lines that Dre made his trademark in the ’90s. “Brand New Dance,” “Evil,” “Bad One” – all of them could have fit on pretty much any other Eminem album.

To add to the familiarity, Skyler Grey returns for another piano-pop collaboration, and there are two songs about his daughter Hailey. Lead single “Houdini” is even more cynical, sampling “Without Me” before copying the formula exactly. All this sameness is numbing; call it Déjà-vuthe feeling of having heard this shit before.

03. Rap ​​God, not War God

Eminem can still explode into a syllable-rock savage, and at 51, he’s at his best in a fight with someone he doesn’t actually like. Opening song “Renaissance” sets high expectations (which are soon dashed) and reflects on the difficulty of making art. Em slams internet haters who put down J Cole and Kendrick Lamar (though he doesn’t mention Drake). The album’s centerpiece, “Guilty Conscience 2,” finds him battling with himself, with mixed if insightful results. But the 51-year-old’s attempts to provoke Generation Z largely miss the mark, and his many, many references to the late actor Christopher Reeve (not “Reeves”, A, Vogt) are not exactly up to date.

“Renaissance,” with its brief references to J. Cole and Kendrick (but not Drake), suggests a different kind of album. It’s interesting to imagine Eminem weighing in on this latest Big 3 feud or otherwise engaging with contemporary music. In fact, it’s much more interesting to imagine than to listen to the actual songs.

04. Cash upon cancellation

Eminem has never kept his strategy a secret. “Though I ain’t the first king of controversy/ I’m the worst thing since Elvis Presley/ To make black music so selfish/ And use it to get rich,” he rapped in “Without Me,” one of the biggest hits in rap history. But The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce) takes this strategy to cynical new extremes. “What the hell are you trying to do?” asks the character Marshall Mathers in “Trouble.” Slim Shady replies, almost begging, “Let’s cancel.” There follow jokes about pop stars’ weight, transphobic puns, and anything else Eminem deems offensive, all in the vain hope that he can make #CancelEminem trend.

05. Eminem’s influence can be heard everywhere, even in his guests

Like many other artists, Eminem is perhaps more influential than great, and many artists who have benefited from his influence are on The death of Slim Shady. Filipino rapper Ez Mill is the latest young rapper to gain attention with an Em record, and you can hear Eminem in the complex, intricate flows of JID and in Big Sean’s unconditional belief that all puns are good puns.

06. Marshall’s Flop

Slim Shady leaves the last third of the album to Marshall. Sonically it is no different (it is never different), though it’s more interesting on a personal level. But in a baffling decision, the section opens with “Head Honcho” and a verse from Ez Mil. It’s fun, technically like Em with the added layer of two languages, but the verse is a straight-up stunt that creates an awkward segue into Em’s thoughts about watching his uncle get stabbed. This feels like a lazy construction, burying the thematic thread of “Guilty Conscience 2” in order to promote a recent addition to the Shady Records roster.

“Head Honcho” is followed by “Temporary,” featuring Skyler Grey. It’s a rehash of “When I’m Gone,” another love letter to Hailie that imagines his absence. And those personal reflections give way to two more upbeat Marshall Mathers-themed songs, “Bad One” and “Tobey.” The former is a nice but understated rap thug, and the latter is a word-fest led by Big Sean. After that, a skit reintroduces the character Ken (remember “Ken is back/ Tell some men?”), and the album closes with “Somebody Save Me,” another pop ballad to his daughter, only this time featuring Jelly Roll instead of Skyler Grey.

In summary, this section proves what Eminem has been hinting at all along: that Marshall Mathers keeps going back to Slim Shady because he’s running out of new ideas and can’t sell records without causing controversy.

07. The album lasts over an hour and almost anything else would be a better use of your time

The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce) has a run time of over 64 minutes. It would be more fun to pick one good song and listen to it on repeat. It would be more fun to clean every bathroom in your house. It would be more fun to gently bang your head against a wall once a minute for 64 minutes. Pick pretty much anything that isn’t a crime except to listen to this album – you really can’t go wrong.