Eminem’s surprise album Kamikaze has truly lived up to the title. Coming at his naysayers, calling out directly artists who were completely dismissive of his previous album Revival. One of the tracks from Kamikaze that has been receiving attention is “Lucky You” which features Joyner Lucas. It has always been interesting to see the chemistry and the dynamics Eminem has had when working with artists outside of his immediate camp. “Luck You” is memorable, a track fans will be talking about for some time. Since early on in his career Eminem has made other memorable tracks with artists outside of his immediate circle.
Eminem – Lucky You feat. Joyner Lucas
The first track to discuss is “The Anthem” which was released in 1998 from Sway & King Tech’s album This or That. The track along with Eminem had a number of great artists including Kool G Rap, KRS-One, Pharoahe Monch, and RZA. Around the same time “Hellbound” was recorded but not officially released until 2000 on a compilation titled Game Over. The track includes J-Black and Masta Ace who happened to be one of Eminem’s idols.
Sway & King Tech – The Anthem feat. Rza, Eminem, Pharoahe Monch, Kool G Rap, KRS-One & Others
Eminem – Hellbound feat. J-Black & Masta Ace
Next memorable collaboration to mention is Eminem’s appearance on Missy Elliot’s “Busa Rhyme” from the 1999 album Da Real World. It would be the one and only time Eminem rapped on a track produced by Timbaland. The following year Eminem dropped “Remember Me” off his 2000 album The Marshall Mathers LP. The track also featured RBX and Sticky Fingaz from Onyx. It was a track that fans debated who delivered the better bars, Eminem or Sticky Fingaz. Around this time Sticky Fingaz was being pursued by Dr. Dre to join Aftermath as a solo artist.
Missy Elliot – Busa Rhyme feat. Eminem
Eminem – Remember Me feat. RBX & Sticky Fingaz
Onyx -Vlad Interview (Working w/ Eminem)
In 2000 Eminem was able to work with Redman on “Off The Wall” from Nutty Professor II: The Klumps soundtrack. Eminem and Redman over the years have shared their admiration and respect for each other. Eminem since early on has acknowledged how much of an influence Redman has had on him. It is pretty evident why they were able to mesh so well together on the track. The following year Eminem appeared on Jay Z’s 2001’s “Renegade” from the first Blue Print album. This is one of the most definitive tracks for both hip-hop giants.
Eminem – Off The Wall feat. Redman
Jay-Z – Renegade feat. Eminem
Eminem in 2002 would continue working with high profile artists outside his immediate camp. This time it was with DMX along with Eminem’s co-hort Obie Trice on “Go To Sleep” from the Cradle 2 the Grave soundtrack. Then 2004 Eminem would hook up with fellow Ruff Ryders The Lox on Jadakiss’s Kiss of Death track “Welcome to D-Block”. Eminem years later would reveal that Jadakiss was in his top ten list of emcees. The last collaboration to mention is off Eminem’s 2010 Recovery album track “No Love” with Lil Wayne. This was during the time Lil Wayne was at his peak with Tha Carter releases and Eminem’s return to top form after being quiet for a few years.
Eminem – Go To Sleep feat. DMX and Obie Trice
Jadakiss – Welcome to D-Block feat. Lox & Eminem
Eminem – No Love feat. Lil Wayne
The Kamikaze album shows an Eminem who is hungry with a chip on his soldier with something to prove. This is the Eminem that majority of the fans embrace the most. The collaborations mentioned illustrate this. What makes these tracks memorable is the fact that the other artists realize that anything less than their best would be unacceptable when working with Eminem. Ever since Eminem’s performance at Coachella and appearing on the track “Caterpillar” with Royce da 5’9” there has been a resurgence of Eminem and his alter ego Slim Shady. With this rebirth there are more memorable collaborations to come.
