Whatever You Say I Am: The Life and Times of Eminem - Hardcover

Bozza, Anthony

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0593051882 ISBN 13: 9780593051887

Publisher: Bantam Press, 2003

Synopsis

Eminem's rise to stardom was far from easy. After being born in Kansas City and travelling back and forth between KC and the Detroit metropolitan area, Eminem and his mother moved into the Eastside of Detroit when he was 12. Switching schools every two to three months made it difficult to make friends, graduate and to stay out of trouble. Rap, however, became Eminem's solace. Battling schoolmates in the lunchroom brought joy to what was otherwise a painful existence. Although he would later drop out of school and land several minimum-wage-paying, full-time jobs, his musical focus remained constant. Eminem released his debut album, "Infinite", in 1996, but after being thoroughly disappointed and hurt by the response it received, Eminem began working on what would later become the "Slim Shady" EP - a project he made for himself. Featuring several scathing lines about local music industry personalities as well as devious rants about life in general, the set quickly caught the ear of hip-hop's difficult-to-please underground. By presenting himself as himself, Eminem and his career took off. Soon after giving the Rap Coalition's Wendy Day a copy of the "Infinite" album at a chance meeting, she helped the aspiring lyrical gymnast secure a spot at the Coalition's 1997 Rap Olympics in Los Angeles, where he won second place in the freestyle competition. During the trip, Eminem and his manager, Paul Rosenberg, gave a few people from Interscope Records his demo and he made his major radio debut on the world famous "Wake Up Show" with Sway and Tech. Realizing that this was the opportunity of his lifetime, Eminem delivered a furious medley of lyrics that wowed his hosts and radio audience alike.

About this title

About the Author

Anthony Bozza is a very well respected Rolling Stone journalist, who wrote the first big profile of Eminem in the USA.

From the Back Cover

Eminem is currently the world's biggest and most controversial music star. He has been blasted for what many of his critics regard as overtly homophobic and misogynistic lyrics, and resented both for his record-breaking commercial success and as a white man in a black genre. George Bush called him 'the most dangerous threat to American children since polio'. But Eminem's sheer talent has transcended such criticisms and established him as the most important figure to come out of popular music since Kurt Cobain.

WHATEVER YOU SAY I AM - featuring dozens of previously unpublished photographs and based on exclusive interviews with key figures in the music business, members of Eminem's family, sociologists and critics - is the first book to get to the heart of the man behind the controversy. Most crucially, Anthony Bozza has had an unprecedented level of access to Eminem himself and has found himself uniquely qualified to answer the big question - why does Eminem matter?

The answer is found in Eminem's unlikely life story, in his extraordinary ascent to superstardom and in an analysis of his music and lyrics. WHATEVER YOU SAY I AM is riveting reading for Eminem's legions of fans, and a revelation for anyone who wants to know why he has so many of them.

Edition details

• Publisher: Bantam Press
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0593051882
• ISBN 13: 9780593051887
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288