Eminem Annotates ‘Lose Yourself,’ ‘My Name Is’ and More for Genius

If nothing else, Eminem is thorough. Having come up as a battle rapper, then a syllable-obsessed wunderkind who plied his way into every living room in America, the Detroit rapper has only become more of a fine craftsman. And where better to explain the minutiae of your work than on Genius? Eminem recently signed up for a "verified" account with the iconoclastic tech startup and started contributing right away. Dispensing stories about his biggest hits ("My Name Is," "Lose Yourself," "Stan") as well and rarities ("'Til Hell Freezes Over," "Ballin' Uncontrollably," "Take the Whole World With Me") alike, Em was as meticulous as he always is on wax.

Speaking on his first major label single, Eminem recalled the kind of culture shock he felt when he first cut songs with Dr. Dre. "'My Name Is' was the first thing that came out of my mouth that first day I was at Dre’s house," Em writes. "I don’t know if we released what I did the first day or if I re-did it, but it was basically the same. I didn’t understand punching, or believe in it. So I would just go from the top of the song all the way down. I was never flying in hooks. Everything was live, one take. If I got all the way to the fucking end, and messed up the last word, I’d be like 'Run it back, let’s do it again.' I remember Dre was like “Yo, are you fucking crazy?'"

Read that and the rest of Eminem's annotations at his official profile page.

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