| Slim Shady EP | ||||
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| EP by | ||||
| Released | December 10, 1997 | |||
| Recorded | 1997 | |||
| Studio | Studio 8 (Ferndale, Michigan) | |||
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| Length | 28:33 | |||
| Label | WEB Entertainment | |||
| Producer |
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| Eminem chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Slim Shady EP | ||||
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Slim Shady EP is the only extended play by American rapper Eminem, released on December 10, 1997, through Web Entertainment. Unlike his debut album Infinite, Slim Shady EP helped Eminem gain the interest of CEO Jimmy Iovine (co-founder of Interscope Records) and West Coast hip-hop rapper and producer Dr. Dre, who subsequently signed Eminem to his Aftermath Entertainment record label, and served as executive producer on his major-label debut album The Slim Shady LP (1999).
The EP introduces Eminem's alter ego Slim Shady. Since the EP was released before he was signed to Interscope and Aftermath, original copies are now highly valued. His lyrics are a marked departure from those found on Infinite, featuring constant references to drug use, sexual acts, mental instability, and over-the-top violence. Another departure was his exploration of more serious themes of dealing with poverty, his direct and self-deprecating response to criticism, and of marital and family difficulties. His flow is also noticeably different from Infinite where critics claimed he sounded too much like Nas and AZ. Eminem also began utilizing story telling on this EP. The production value of the music on the tracks — from previous collaborators DJ Head, The Bass Brothers, and Mr. Porter — was also noticeably higher than on prior album efforts. According to Billboard, at this point in his life Eminem had "realized his musical ambitions were the only way to escape his unhappy life".