Eminem revealed Revival‘s tracklist Tuesday (December 5), leaving many fans scratching their heads. Ed Sheeran? P!nk? Alicia Keys? It hardly seems like the Slim Shady of 2000’s Marshall Mathers LP, who would’ve had bars mocking these artists, right?
The 19-track offering features the aforementioned pop stars, Beyoncé (who’s featured on the project’s lead single “Walk On Water”), Kehlani, rock outfit X Ambassadors, PHresher (the sole rap feature), and frequent collaborator/songwriter Skylar Grey.
Like Hot 97’s Peter Rosenberg tweeted, “Eminem’s features read like a we are the world album….for better or for worse.”
The majority of fans seem to be primarily confused by the Sheeran collaboration, “River,” while others were disappointed Kendrick Lamar didn’t make it on the album. 2 Chainz was also noticeably absent, a collaboration fans thought was a no-brainer. Tity Boi posted pictures of himself with Em in June, sparking speculation a joint track was on the way. Then the following month, 2 Chainz was cagey about a collab actually existing during an interview with Hot 97.
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Dedicated Slim Shady fans on Reddit also came up with a theory of their own that would explain the seemingly strange selection of featured artists.
They think it’s possible Revival is a double album and we’re only getting half the picture right now. On the Instagram photo revealing the tracklist, the bottom half of the Revival title is cut off, leading some to think there could be two parts to the project. Coupled with the almost-total absence of Hip Hop features, it’s a theory fans are running with.
Whatever the case, despite all of the shock and outrage, the official verdict on Revival won’t be in until next Friday (December 15) when the album actually drops.
Until then, check out some more of the reactions below.
