(ThyBlackMan.com) I’ve written quite a bit about Eminem. One thing that has been consistent is I am not a fan, but I respect his skills. Granted it seems that Eminem receives spots in the greatest lyricists discussions that I don’t feel he deserves, but I will always be fair where he’s concerned. It was recently explained to me that what made Eminem great is him working with Dr. Dre. Basically, Eminem would have been nothing without Dr. Dre. It’s very easy to agree with that argument, but just as I am not willing to give Eminem more than he’s worth…I won’t take anything away from him. Eminem was a good artist before being discovered by Dr. Dre. There is a difference between loyalty one has to the person that gave them an opportunity, and someone that created you as an artist.
It could be argued that Dr. Dre, and Aftermath, got the shock it needed to stay alive with Eminem. He was fresh, and his sound style
was original. Yes, it’s always helpful to have Dr. Dre handling the production, but Dr. Dre is a producer not a magician. He can’t turn crap to sugar…eventually the setup would fall apart if Eminem was not capable of holding his own.
In all fairness if Dr. Dre made Eminem then Jay-Z made Kanye West. We aren’t going to make that argument because we will acknowledge that Jay-Z was a mentor, and gave Kanye a larger platform, but Kanye West was already talented and somehow he was going to get to the big stage.
It is great that Eminem and Dr. Dre have a good relationship. Being able to say thank you for giving me a stage to showcase the talent I have is the kind of stuff loyalty is made of. Eminem is forever loyal to Dr. Dre. There are quite a few artists, such as The Game, that are also loyal to Dr. Dre for the platform.
It’s just always important never to mistake that loyalty for creation of an artist. There are producers out there that go into the studio and make a star…that wasn’t the case with Eminem. Dr. Dre had quite a bit to work with. There you have it…yes, I’ve defended Eminem. Fair is the name of the game.
Staff Writer; Adonicka Sassy