Eminem’s notorious Slim Shady rap persona has been laid to rest. To promote the upcoming album centered around this event, the rap icon officially announced the news in an obituary article in the Detroit Free Press newspaper.
“Slim Shady Made Lasting Impressions” reads the Detroit Free Press headline with the subhead, “Fans ‘Will Never Forget’ Controversial Rapper.’”
Slim Shady was introduced in 1999 on Eminem’s debut album, The Slim Shady LP. On the hit single, “My Name Is,” fans were infatuated with the persona’s heinous antics such as attacking his teacher with a stapler, disrespecting his mother, and revealing he was lied to for 99% of his life made the song a #1 hit on Billboard charts.
“Fans ‘will never forget’ controversial rapper,” the fabricated obituary reads. “A product of Detroit who began his career there as a rogue splinter in the flourishing underground rap scene of the mid to late 1990s, Shady first became a household name in 1999 with the debut of his playfully deranged single ‘My Name Is,’ which — along with its uniquely eye-catching video — exposed the young artist and his lyrics to a wider audience.”
The article continues: “Ultimately, the very things that seemed to be the tools he used became calling cards that defined an existence that could only come to a sudden and horrific end. His complex and tortured existence has come to a close, and the legacy he leaves behind is no closer to resolution than the manner in which this character departed this world. May he truly find the peace in an afterlife that he could not find on Earth.”
Eminem announced his upcoming album, The Death of Slim Shady, in April with a mystery trailer. 50 Cent made a cameo and described Slim Shady as a “psychopath.” In January, Eminem expressed interest in collaborating with his former protege-turned-TV mogul.
Eminem’s mentor, Dr. Dre, will collaborate with Eminem again on his 12th studio album. The Death of Slim Shady follows Eminem’s 2020 album, Music To Be Murdered By, featuring Don Toliver, Ty Dolla $ign, DJ Premiere, and more.