Introduction

Rap is arguably the most dominant force in popular culture (Farley, "Hip-Hop"). American teenagers rate rap their favorite musical genre ("Tunes"), and rap has reached ascendancy globally (Bennett, Cultures). Nearly every country in the world features some form or mutation of rap music (Krims). Gangsta rap is the music's dominant subgenre such that artists offering other kinds of rap are categorized as either "alternative" (Bennett, "Rap") or part of the "non-gangsta wing of hip-hop" (Pareles, "Uncommon" E6). Eminem, a gangsta rapper, is the music's biggest star.

Eminem is the "professionally known as" name of Marshall Mathers III. The name is a metonym derived from the sound of his initials, "M&M." Eminem also uses the nickname Slim Shady. Other artists and music commentators employ the sobriquet "Em." By 2002, Eminem had become a franchise and the hope of the music industry (Pareles, "Eminem'). He is world's biggest selling rap artist (Hilburn) and the most popular living gangsta rap artist. (1) His film debut in the semi-autobiographical 8 Mile won him critical acclaim ("Critics"). 8 Mile had the eighth highest opening week gross of the 296 movies released during 2002 ("Movie"). Eminem has won consecutive Grammy awards for best rap album. In 1999, The Slim Shady LP earned the honor, followed by his 2000 release The Marshall Mathers LP. The latter became the fastest selling rap album of all time, the fastest selling album by a solo artist, and the second fastest selling album ever (Violanti). (2) In 2000, Eminem joined luminary gangsta artists (e.g., Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Ice Cube) as part of the "Up in Smoke" tour, the most successful rap tour in history. At the time, Gary Bongiovanni, editor-in-chief of Pollstar, a concert industry trade publication, correctly predicted the tour's outcome: "The timing absolutely could not have been better ... Eminem brings a huge cross-cultural appeal" (Boucher, "Cover"). Eminem's fame is such that the New York Times reported a rumor that Time magazine would name Eminem its "Man of the Year" for 2000 (Strauss, "Pop"). In Summer 2001, Eminem's group, D-12, saw its Devil's Night move to number 1 in the charts upon its release. (3) A year later The Eminem Show and the 8 Mile soundtrack did likewise. The former was the biggest selling album of the year. Billboard's Hot 100 chart ranked "Lose Yourself," a song from 8 Mile, number I for the last nine weeks of 2002 ("Charts"). Journalists have proclaimed 2002 "the Year of Eminem" (McCollum, "Pop"; Strauss, "2002"). Given these items of popular culture prominence, it is surprising that scholars have ignored Eminem. (4)

This study is an initial attempt to explore, albeit in a preliminary manner, the distinctive elements of Eminem's gangsta rap. A way to proceed is by detailing the dimensions of Eminem's annunciations of authenticity through his words. Procedurally, I scrutinize not only his lyric content but also his responses to interview queries and his autobiographical statements. The constant touchstone for my endeavor is Eminem's commercial concerns. Popular music is inextricably bound to the capitalist interests that produce it--it is commercial in its very essence (Garofalo). Upon analysis, it appears to me that Eminem's lyric content--both the spoken and the unspoken--is predicated upon his unique place in the history of rap. Dr. Dre signed him to a recording contract because of his race. Dre sought a white artist to appeal to rap's largest consumer base white middle-class suburban teenagers. As Bayles adduces, this audience increases its purchases of rap the more the lyrics become "obscene [and] violent" (342). It would seem reasonable that Eminem and Dre, his producer, would design his lyrics to appeal to his projected audience.

Eminem acts as if he never expected to become an object of black scorn and feminist abhorrence. For example, he complains that: "Every interview I do is like, your lyrics are deadly, man, they're violent and misogynistic; or black this, white that" (Weiner 61). Although his avowed surprise is possibly contrived, it portends Eminem's construction of authenticity through a critical appraisal of race and violent misogyny as thematic features. His constant announcements that he's white and his graphic portrayals of violence against women appear overtly directed to this dominant white hip-hop audience. His heightened misogyny further proves that he is an authentic gangsta, even more vicious than his predecessors. Understated, this criterion of authenticity means showing irreverence and crudeness (Cross). I will demonstrate that Eminem takes stands on the two modes of authenticity construction. He legitimizes himself in terms of both the white-black and violent misogynist axes while rejecting a key element of gangsta rap's oppositional nature--i.e., the underclass, evocative use of the "N-word." The lynchpin of my analysis is what goes "unspoken" in Eminem's lyrics--his refusal to say "nigga" in any of his songs.

Authenticity

Since the beginning of the modern age, the central issue in folklore studies has been the question of authenticity (Bendix). The notion of authenticity permeated every point in the history of popular music (Leach). In the literature of musicology, the authenticity question focuses on the relation between performer and composition (Rudinow). In rock, the term "authentic" designates artists and music that are direct and honest and uncorrupted by commerce, trends, and derivativeness (Keightley). But different kinds of popular music have "different authenticities" (Davison 263). In addition, they assign differing importance to the process of establishing authenticity. Alan Light, editor of Spin magazine, believes that authenticity is deeply important in rap, more so that any other musical genre (Boucher, "Will"). Three kinds of authenticity are initially evident. First, there's a concern with being true to oneself. Rap illustrates self-creation and individuality as a value. Next, there's the question of location or place. Rap prioritizes artists' local allegiances and territorial identities. Finally, the question becomes whether a performer has the requisite relation and proximity to an original source of rap. Eminem is firmly grounded in these three kinds of authenticity.

According to Moore (214), "first person authenticity" arises when artists succeed in conveying the impression that their utterances are ones of integrity. Many rappers believe that "the subject matter isn't as important as being true to yourself" (Snyder). For Busta Rhymes, all is well "as long as I can represent what I am, which is hip-hop" (Watson 67). Xzibit's number one rule of conduct is "Stay true to yourself" ("Xzibit" 162). One of the members of Cypress Hill has even adopted the name "B-Real." In 2000, Sprite, a soft drink brand of the Coca-Cola Company, launched a $20 million ad campaign featuring rappers with the theme of "being true to yourself" (MacArthur 4). Not surprisingly, therefore, a Vibe interviewer found Eminem obsessed with being real: "Words matter to him. 'The truth of the matter.' This is his favorite phrase" (Smith 92). Eminem separates himself from other rappers for whom image takes precedence over words, and laments "nobody cares about the words" (Smith 94). So, for Eminem, lyrics are the vehicle for expressing self-identity and revealing personal truths. But this raises a crucial question: "How real is real?" (Smith 92). After all, Eminem isn't in the business of committing the crimes detailed in his lyrics. In fact, neither are any other gangsta rappers. The lack of correspondence between words and deeds is fundamental to standard rap discourse. It's Eminem's affirmation of "being real" that is a normative rap validation code. Eminem's "first person authenticity" is essentially grounded in the rap world, "a world where 'keeping it real' has become an empty boast" (Raftery).