Guess who’s back, back again? Shady is back — and it might be the last time.
On Friday, May 31, Eminem released a new single, “Houdini,” his first single from his upcoming album The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce).
The video for the new track, released the same day, opens with the now 51-year-old rapper in bed, receiving a call from Dr. Dre, in a direct echo of his 2002 “Without Me” video. In fact, the song itself opens with “Guess who’s back, he’s back/Shady’s back, tell a friend,” lyrics from the 22-year-old track, and much of the video is reminiscent of the one the rapper released for his earlier track.
In “Houdini,” Eminem receives a call from Dre, who reveals that a portal has opened in the city in 2002, meaning that a younger version of Eminem—complete with the short, bleached blonde hair the rapper sported at the time—has arrived in 2024.
The older and younger versions of the two rappers later appear on screen together, as the video continues with the comic book-style visuals also used in “Without Me,” and Eminem even wears the same superhero suit he wore in the earlier video while rapping about himself younger, what Eminem in his twenties would say about the present time, as well as today’s life.
“Abra-abracadabra (And for my last trick)/I’m about to reach in my bag, bruh (Like)/Abra-abracadabra (And for my last trick, poof)/Just like that and I’m back bro,” he raps on the chorus songs.
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Eminem and Pete Davidson in the music video for the song “Houdini”.
EminemMusic/Youtube
As well as cameos from 50 Cent, Snoop Dogg, and comedian Shane Gillis — all of whom appear on screen in comic book-style parts of the video — Eminem and his younger self end up fighting a battle where they merge with the older version of the rapper, with a longer, bleached blonde hair.
Elsewhere, this “new” Eminem raps surrounded by another blonde Slim Shady lookalike before the clip for the new song ends with a cameo from Pete Davidson, who appears with flashy blonde hair and gets into the rapper’s car to give him a ride, telling him: “Don’t worry , I just got my license back.”
Days before its release, the rapper released the track’s cover art, which featured a magician wearing a Jason Voorhees hockey mask and making an electrified microphone float in the air.
“Guess who’s back? And for my last trick…” reads the cover.
Eminem pronounced Slim Shady Alter Ego dead in Detroit newspaper obituary ahead of new album
A day earlier, Eminem (real name Marshall Mathers) released a video featuring magician David Blaine, in which he asks the magician for help.
“I was wondering how far we can go with this magic? Like, can we do a stunt or something?” he says. “Well for my last trick, I’m going to make my career disappear.”
Eminem’s ad campaign for his upcoming album focuses on the magic and alleged death of his longtime alter ego Slim Shady. The star first introduced fans to Slim in 1997 with Slim Shady EPand shut down two years later Slim Shady LP.
The album featured songs with lyrics from the perspective of his alter ego, including “My Name Is,” his first major hit that featured the famous opening line, “Hi, my name is, what? My name is who? My name is, chka-chka, Slim Shady.”
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Earlier this month, a fake obituary for Slim Shady appeared in the Detroit Free PressEminem’s hometown newspaper.
Complex reported that the obituary’s headline read, “Slim Shady Made Lasting Impressions,” with the caption saying, “Fans will never forget the controversial rapper.”
The obituary describes Shady as a Detroit native whose debut single “My Name Is” “exposed the young artist and his lyrics to a wider audience, but who would “meet a sudden and horrific end”. Obit also said that “the legacy he leaves behind is no closer to resolution than the manner in which this character left this world.”
Weeks earlier, Eminem announced The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce)which will mark his first new album since its January 2020 release Music for murder.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education