subject: Top 5 Eminem Collaborations [print this page] As the most notable hip hop artist of the last decade, Eminem has had his fair share of chart success, and many of his greatest successes have come from collaborations.
'Forgot About Dre' with Dr. Dre
'Forgot About Dre' reached number seven in the UK singles chart and was featured on Dre's 2001 album. Like many other tracks on the album, such as 'Still D.R.E' the song announces Dr. Dre's return to hip hop and reminds listeners about his impact on the genre.
The song is widely thought to be a response to disses made on Chronic 2000, a compilation released by Suge Knight. Eminem confessed to having penned the song with the idea of getting Snoop Doggy Dogg to sing the chorus.
'Stan' with Dido
'Stan', although not a proper collaboration, did sample British artist Dido for the beat and chorus. It was a number one hit around the world, and used an only slightly modified break from Dido's 'Thank You'. Both tracks were released as singles at the end of 2000, and both have become signature tracks for the artists involved.
The song is loosely based on real life, with Eminem taking on the mantle of Stan, an obsessive and mentally unstable fan who is persuing the rapper through letters. In the fourth verse Eminem raps as himself and begins to reply to Stan when he hears about Stan's death on the news. The song has been a huge hit around the world and has won many awards.
'Renegade' with Jay-Z
'Renegade' is a collaborative track with Jay-Z, but was originally intended to involve Royce da 5'9" before he was replaced by Jay-Z. Earlier versions of the track featuring Royce are included on mixtapes from the time and have been distributed online. The Jay-Z collaboration was released both on Jay-Z's 'Blueprint' album and Eminem's 'Curtain Call' album.
Jay-Z's verses deal with a fatherless childhood, and how financial difficulties forced him to sell drugs. He also talks about how this hardship forced him to mature quickly and helped him to make important decisions. He states that his music is a product of this upbringing, and that critics who say that he only raps about "bling" are unaware of how the music connects with those going through similar problems, and that these critics have simple skimmed his discography, rather than listening intently.
Eminem's verses deal also with the perception of the music, arguing that he had been made a "media scapegoat" for a variety of other issues.
'Dead Wrong' with Notorious B.I.G
Dead Wrong is an impressive collaboration, Impressive in that Eminem managed to collaborate with Biggie Smalls after he died. The song was released posthumously in 1999, and was also released on Biggie's third album, Born Again. The song sampled the drum break from Al Green's 'I'm Glad You're Mine'.
'Love the Way You Lie' with Rihanna
Love the Way You Lie is from Eminem's seventh studio album, Recovery, released in 2010. It features vocals from Rihanna and gave Eminem his fourth US number one hit and Rihanna her seventh.
