Def Jam Recordings co-founder Rick Rubin and author Malcolm Gladwell announced their new Broken Record podcast on Friday (November 10), the same day Eminem released “Walk On Water” featuring Beyonce. The song serves as the first single from Em’s upcoming ninth studio album, Revival.
Considering Slim Shady is the first guest on Broken Record, the nearly 15-minute podcast coincides perfectly with the new song’s release, which is also produced by Rubin. During the interview, the Detroit rap goliath explained the meaning behind the emotional track.
“It’s a very moral song,” Em says. “It’s mortality, not being Superman and what if I can’t come up with the best shit I wrote every single time?”
Earlier in the episode, Rubin talked about a conversation he was having with Em about the rise of mumble rap. Shady’s penchant for well crafted, descriptive bars has him understandably “frustrated” with the current incarnation of Hip Hop.
“For him, it’s a little bit of a culture shock because there’s a new wave of Hip Hop that’s not really what he’s about, so he was just talking to me about how that felt,” Rubin says. “I could see he was frustrated by it.”
Rubin also touched on his songwriting process and explained that working with Eminem is unlike working with any other artist.
“He’s fanatical to a point that I don’t think I’ve seen in anyone before just through his attention to deal,” Rubin says. “He has a perfect memory of everything about the music and he gets inside of it, and he writes to whatever is good or bad about it.”
Mr. Mathers then admitted he’s been obsessed with studying Hip Hop and the greats who came before him. Mostly, he opens about Tupac Shakur and how much he learned from listening to his music.
“I’ve been a student of Hip Hop and I’ve always studied rap, and one of the things I learned from Tupac — I don’t know how — he just always knew the right words to say on the right chords,” Em explains. “I remember he said, ‘My broken down TV/ Showed cartoons in my living room’ on ‘Unconditional Love,’ a song he had. I was like, ‘Oh my god, he could have said that on the bar before it and it wouldn’t have meant as much, but he said it right here, where the chord got sad.
“I studied that so much and I was like, ‘Oh my god,'” he continues. “He was so genius at doing that. He never said the wrong thing on the wrong chord. Listen to ‘Dear Mama.’ Listen to every single thing — every single thought, every single word, every single bar was so in place of where it should be. He was just so smart about picking his beats. 2Pac always said, ‘Feel me.’ You have to feel him, not just hear him.”
In terms of who has influenced Eminem throughout his life, his list is long. He rattled off several names of some of his favorite artists, including Ice-T, Public Enemy and Rakim.
“When I first got into to Hip Hop, I started with Ice-T,” he says. “And N.W.A came out, and Audio Two … Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane, Masta Ace, the whole Juice Crew, Beastie Boys, 3rd Bass — everything that was good Hip Hop — Treach, Naughty By Nature, the whole Flavor Unit. There’s so many that I learned from and just studied — Biggie and Big L, Poor Righteous Teachers, YZ, Rakim, KRS-One, Wu-Tang, Leaders of the New School, JAY-Z, Nas … Public Enemy. I didn’t say Public Enemy. I meant to say Public Enemy.”
He adds, “Oh shit I forgot Run-DMC. Why did I forget Run-DMC? Anybody I forget, if I’m in an interview or something, I’ll start thinking about it afterwards or something. Just wanted to say that. Run-DMC. Amazing. Rick Rubin. Amazing. DJ Double R. Thank you, man.”
Listen to the full episode above and cop it here.
sorry but I’ve never got into Eminem’s catalogue. His shit sounds too corny for me. The Dr. Dre / Aftermath support doesn’t change anything. His lyrics and his antics are not appealing to me.
I bet you listen to mumble rap. Tell me what your pumping?
your mom’s vagina
I want to watch.
Best comment of the year lol
Then you don’t have to listen and comment. Seems you trying to impress or you lying
funny when someone doesn’t like someone else’s favorite rapper either he’s listening to “mumble rap” or he’s “trying to impress or lying”. FOH !
Lakim shabazz is so dope. Suggest checking him out (if you like all kinds of rap)
nah
So he knows its trash and that he fell off and tries to excuse it wit “I’m not Superman, I can be trash too”??
Every1 is trash nowadays…jay nas 50…everyone is trash these days even drake cole young thug yatchy all them…so y hate on dude
Drake the worst thou cuz he a jevv.
Hey why ppl hate jevvs? I hate drake cuz he sucks not cuz his beliefs…
Fuck that bone is not trash at all..bizzy and krazyies flow are sicker than ever..so maybe everyone else..but not the thugs
This is why you dumb ass kids shouldn’t speak. The whole song is about him not being a god, just a man. Go mumble and rinse and repeat lil dummy.
in the picture we see the goyim and the jevv.
The talent pool is very shallow today and this the very first time in any decade the heavy weights are Em ‘Jay Z ‘ J Cole ‘ Kendric Lamar I have to go back in the day to hear good music one with different lanes not just the one lane that’s lame and full of garbage
famous satanist rick rubin and the overrated rapper get together again to make some shitty music
its true he worships at the synagogue of satan.
As Long as Em not rapping about wanting to hurt his mom or girlfriend or any other woman. Not dissing pop stars or calling ppl f@gg0ts or mashing a bunch of nonsense rhyming words together. He’s ok. He once had the best or 2nd best flow in the game. Now he’s just yelling like he cant even hear the beat.
I rather him talk shit about pop stars then make a track with Beyonce fucking whining!
I like when Em calls out the days and shots on the corny pop stars…more rappers should start calling out gay ass skinny jean wearing man kissers the rap wouldn’t be so …we have rappers wearing dresses and weaves for petes sake
have you seen eminem lately he is the skinny jean wearing whiney bitch now so why would he make fun of them
Fuck u em..theres in an interview were u said u listnened to bone thugs n now you dont mention the group..the same these days..no one gives bone their due n respect..bitch ass whiteboy
Relax guy… He also didn’t mention Redman who he considers his favorite rapper in every other interview. It’s called too many influences to name
Again, jealous a white boy outdid you toads at your own genre. Go back to talking about how influential Lil B and XXXTENTACION is boy. Children these days…
he was talking about bone, not mumble rappers. lol but still AZ is right.
Yo it’s dope it hits revives his narrative with a conversation we all think about……” does he hear our gripes and moans ?” So thank you for making this Eminem show one in excited to visit for the ….4th time ……shit I watched all the Rambo’s ,American ninja series ,aliens hell even attack of the killer tomatoes …….this is a strong commercial on creativeness in crafting and exciting new story…
If this songs not top 10 on his new album hell have a classic..if songs top 3-5 its going to be rough..solid song not 1st single for his highly anticipated albun
Ya all trippin. “I don’t care about Eminem” – clicks on every Eminem article to give his opinion. Sorry Em dominated all rappers and you all salty cuz no one has won beef with him.
stop dick ridin and let me talk shit
Can someone in here actually make a decent comment? You know… something that makes sense and not just another bitch routine.
no
THIS SHIT MAKES ME ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,SHIVER…….THE GOAT….ONE LOVE …EM
take Eminem out and go back to 2009 without forever I don’t think drake would have gotten so big and rappers like French Montana wouldn’t have blown up and died like it was nothing people repped that shit so hard and now there on to next side show that drake and the others put on and the funny part is there not good I never seen French or rick Ross or Migos rip a freestyle like slaughterhouses d.o.a or put albums together like skyzoo and his camp people don’t know hip hop anymore nas was right he said it 2006 and by the end of the decade hip hop was dead .. and this is what the best rapper alive puts out how am I supposed to bob my head to this ??