Eminem’s discography spans eight studio albums, and ahead of his latest release, The Marshall Mathers LP 2, we’ve gone back and picked out our top 10 favorite songs.
Eminem has had so many hits over the years that it’s so hard to keep count of all of them. In fact, many of Eminem’s best songs were never even released as singles. His discography alone is enough proof of his rap god status.
Danielle Zimmerman and Karen Rought join together to talk about their all-time favorite Eminem songs. This list is by no means exhaustive (because, really, only five songs each!?) and it’s not meant to represent the best of the rapper’s tracks. Instead, they discuss what the songs mean to them and why they think you should give them a listen.
Be sure to leave your favorites in the comments below!
Danielle’s Top 5 favorite Eminem songs
5. ‘Not Afraid’
As you peruse my top 5, you may notice that I have a thing for motivational Eminem songs. I, myself, only just noticed it as I was compiling my list. “Not Afraid” is one of those songs that I just want to sing at the top of my lungs, as loud as I can regardless of where I am or what I’m doing. It’s motivational in that it gets me really pumped up for whatever I’m doing or whatever I’m about to do. For instance, if this song comes on while I’m driving, I’m suddenly super pumped to be driving. It has even pumped me up to do homework before, if you’ll believe that. This song should be on everyone and every team’s warm-up/pump-up CD or mixtape.
4. ‘Sing for the Moment’
Or as I like to refer to it, “Lose Yourself (Part II)” (which is definitely not a bad thing). The majority of the emotions I feel while listening to “Lose Yourself” definitely come up when I listen to this song. I can honestly say I’ve turned to this song for motivation quite a few times. To me, it’s a song about pushing through the hard times and doing what you think is right, not what others tell you is right. It also serves as a reminder that not everything is always as simple as black and white. Plus, as a large fan of rock, I love how this song samples Aerosmith’s “Sing for the Moment.” While I usually object to this kind of sampling, I think it works really well with this song and thoroughly enjoy it.
3. ‘Without Me’
Even though I was born in 1990 and was an avid KISS FM/radio listener, “Without Me” was, for some reason, the first Eminem song I ever heard. So, naturally, I have quite an attachment to it. I remember learning all of the words to the song in about a day and feeling super cool for dropping so many pop culture references (some of which I did not understand at the time). Part of the reason why this song is one of my favorites is its awesome music video. There are just as many pop culture references and “homages” in the video as there are in the song, if not more. “Without Me” is just pure fun.
2. ‘Cleanin’ Out My Closet’
You can’t tell me that the beat of this song isn’t super catchy. My head automatically starts bobbing whenever the song starts, even before my brain can even register that the song is playing. Even though I haven’t been through any of the things that Eminem has, I can relate to his anger on some level. I can relate to that feeling of having things build up inside of me to the point where I have no choice but to let it out. Above all else, I just love how honest Eminem is in this song. It’s a side of him we don’t get to see often. This song makes him feel more like a real person to me rather than just another rap star.
1. ‘Lose Yourself’
I have a confession to make: To this day, I still have never seen 8 Mile. Not once. I’ve been a fan of Eminem for years but, for some reason, I have never been able to sit down and watch 8 Mile (even though it’s on VH1 or MTV every other weekend). Regardless, “Lose Yourself” is hands down my favorite Eminem song. When the slow, distorted piano intro leads into the song’s beat with Eminem’s voiceover, I get chills in the best kind of way. While I’ve never wanted to be a rapper and can’t relate to the song on a literal level, I definitely connect to it on a metaphorical level. Whenever I need a confidence or motivation boost, this is the first song that I turn to. I can’t even verbalize all of the reasons why I love this song, and I’m sure there are quite a few of you out there who know exactly what I mean.
Continue reading to find out which five songs are Karen’s favorites!
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