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Whatever You Say I Am: The Life and Times of Eminem
does eminem matter?
On assignment for his first cover story for Rolling Stone, the very first national cover story on Eminem, Anthony Bozza met a young blond kid, a rapper who would soon take the country by storm. But back in 1999, Eminem was just beginning to make waves among suburban white teenagers as his first single, “My Name Is,” went into heavy rotation on MTV.
Who could have predicted that in a mere two years, Eminem would become the most reviled and controversial hip-hop figure ever? Or that twelve months after that, Eminem would sit firmly at the pinnacle of American celebrity, a Grammy winner many times over and the recipient of an Oscar.
did eminem change or did america finally figure him out?
Whatever You Say I Am attempts to answer this question and many more. Since their first meeting, Bozza has been given a level of access to Eminem that no other journalist has enjoyed. In Whatever You Say I Am , original, never-before-published text from Bozza’s interviews with Eminem are combined with the insight of numerous hip-hop figures, music critics, journalists, and members of the Eminem camp to look behind the mask of this enigmatic celebrity. With an eye toward Eminem’s place in American popular culture, Bozza creates a thoughtful portrait of one of the most successful artists of our time. This is so much more than a biography of a thoroughly well-documented life. It is a close-up look at a conflicted figure who has somehow spoken to the heart of America.
On assignment for his first cover story for Rolling Stone, the very first national cover story on Eminem, Anthony Bozza met a young blond kid, a rapper who would soon take the country by storm. But back in 1999, Eminem was just beginning to make waves among suburban white teenagers as his first single, “My Name Is,” went into heavy rotation on MTV.
Who could have predicted that in a mere two years, Eminem would become the most reviled and controversial hip-hop figure ever? Or that twelve months after that, Eminem would sit firmly at the pinnacle of American celebrity, a Grammy winner many times over and the recipient of an Oscar.
did eminem change or did america finally figure him out?
Whatever You Say I Am attempts to answer this question and many more. Since their first meeting, Bozza has been given a level of access to Eminem that no other journalist has enjoyed. In Whatever You Say I Am , original, never-before-published text from Bozza’s interviews with Eminem are combined with the insight of numerous hip-hop figures, music critics, journalists, and members of the Eminem camp to look behind the mask of this enigmatic celebrity. With an eye toward Eminem’s place in American popular culture, Bozza creates a thoughtful portrait of one of the most successful artists of our time. This is so much more than a biography of a thoroughly well-documented life. It is a close-up look at a conflicted figure who has somehow spoken to the heart of America.
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
115 people are currently reading
1264 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Bozza
22 books28 followersAnthony Bozza is living the life many only dream about. As the bestselling author of seven books, including the autobiographies of Slash, Tommy Lee, Artie Lange and Tracy Morgan, Bozza has both the ear and the trust of rock and pop culture royalty. He is currently co-writing Wyclef Jean’s autobiography as well as publishing up-and-coming authors and cutting edge non-fiction via his Igniter Literary Group, an imprint of Harper Collins’ It Books. Bozza co-founded Igniter with fellow bestselling author Neil Strauss.
Bozza’s writing career began with an internship at Rolling Stone, where he did the usual fact-checking and assistant work that comes with the job. But his knowledge and love of music quickly let to his big break after a friend turned him on to a then-unknown white rapper called Eminem. Bozza championed Eminem, singing his praises to his editors a year before he was even signed to a record deal. In 1999, when Rolling Stone decided to do a cover story on Slim Shady’s debut release, they assigned Bozza, who made the most of the opportunity. That defining portrait of Eminem led to six other cover stories, numerous features and countless articles over Bozza’s seven year tenure at the iconic magazine. During that time he also wrote and edited the “Random Notes” section, following in the footsteps of legendary culture critics like writer-director Cameron Crowe as well as MTV’s Kurt Loder. By 2002, Bozza had done it all, so he left Rolling Stone to focus on writing books, but by no means has he lost his love for the music scene and how it speaks to and reflects the state of our society.
His cover stories and multiple features on Eminem evolved into Bozza’s first book, Whatever You Say I Am: The Life and Times of Eminem. It was deemed a “compelling” investigation of the “Shadyification of America” by New York Times’ critic Janet Maslin and became an international bestseller. The book wisely focused not only on Eminem himself, but on how his success as a white rapper spoke to the state of race and culture in America. From there, Bozza has never looked back. He collaborated with Mötley Crüe drummer, Tommy Lee, then Guns n’ Roses guitarist, Slash, on their respective autobiographies, Tommyland and Slash - both bestsellers. He went on to work with comedian Artie Lange, whose autobiography Too Fat to Fish debuted at #1 on The New York Times bestseller list and remained on the list for 22 weeks. Bozza’s next two books were Why AC/DC Matters and I Am the New Black, the autobiography of 30 Rock and SNL star Tracy Morgan. Bozza has written for magazines and newspapers worldwide, including Spin, Maxim, The New York Times, The Guardian/Observer (U.K.), Q, Mojo, Paper, Nylon, Blender and Radar, and continues to do so as often as possible.
Never one to rest on his past success, Bozza is in the midst of his next collaboration, this time with Wyclef Jean of the Fugees, a story that will be both uplifting and heartbreaking in light of the recent tragedy in Jean’s home country of Haiti. Bozza has also sought out new and exciting challenges as co-publisher of Igniter Literary Group, which will be distributed by Harper Collins’ It Books. The imprint’s first release, The Last Living Slut: Born in Iran, Bred Backstage, will redefine the rock groupie memoir upon its release in June 2010. Igniter’s next title, The Man Behind the Nose, is the autobiography of Larry “Bozo the Clown” Harmon and will be released in August 2010. And as if all that weren’t enough, Bozza is shopping a TV show that will feature him in the field, chasing down interviews with pop culture’s most notoriously elusive and difficult subjects.
Bozza lives in New York City.
Bozza’s writing career began with an internship at Rolling Stone, where he did the usual fact-checking and assistant work that comes with the job. But his knowledge and love of music quickly let to his big break after a friend turned him on to a then-unknown white rapper called Eminem. Bozza championed Eminem, singing his praises to his editors a year before he was even signed to a record deal. In 1999, when Rolling Stone decided to do a cover story on Slim Shady’s debut release, they assigned Bozza, who made the most of the opportunity. That defining portrait of Eminem led to six other cover stories, numerous features and countless articles over Bozza’s seven year tenure at the iconic magazine. During that time he also wrote and edited the “Random Notes” section, following in the footsteps of legendary culture critics like writer-director Cameron Crowe as well as MTV’s Kurt Loder. By 2002, Bozza had done it all, so he left Rolling Stone to focus on writing books, but by no means has he lost his love for the music scene and how it speaks to and reflects the state of our society.
His cover stories and multiple features on Eminem evolved into Bozza’s first book, Whatever You Say I Am: The Life and Times of Eminem. It was deemed a “compelling” investigation of the “Shadyification of America” by New York Times’ critic Janet Maslin and became an international bestseller. The book wisely focused not only on Eminem himself, but on how his success as a white rapper spoke to the state of race and culture in America. From there, Bozza has never looked back. He collaborated with Mötley Crüe drummer, Tommy Lee, then Guns n’ Roses guitarist, Slash, on their respective autobiographies, Tommyland and Slash - both bestsellers. He went on to work with comedian Artie Lange, whose autobiography Too Fat to Fish debuted at #1 on The New York Times bestseller list and remained on the list for 22 weeks. Bozza’s next two books were Why AC/DC Matters and I Am the New Black, the autobiography of 30 Rock and SNL star Tracy Morgan. Bozza has written for magazines and newspapers worldwide, including Spin, Maxim, The New York Times, The Guardian/Observer (U.K.), Q, Mojo, Paper, Nylon, Blender and Radar, and continues to do so as often as possible.
Never one to rest on his past success, Bozza is in the midst of his next collaboration, this time with Wyclef Jean of the Fugees, a story that will be both uplifting and heartbreaking in light of the recent tragedy in Jean’s home country of Haiti. Bozza has also sought out new and exciting challenges as co-publisher of Igniter Literary Group, which will be distributed by Harper Collins’ It Books. The imprint’s first release, The Last Living Slut: Born in Iran, Bred Backstage, will redefine the rock groupie memoir upon its release in June 2010. Igniter’s next title, The Man Behind the Nose, is the autobiography of Larry “Bozo the Clown” Harmon and will be released in August 2010. And as if all that weren’t enough, Bozza is shopping a TV show that will feature him in the field, chasing down interviews with pop culture’s most notoriously elusive and difficult subjects.
Bozza lives in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 80 reviews
August 12, 2012
There is way too much in this book that is not about Eminem. Plainly and simply, you can tell that Anthony Bozza wrote for Rolling Stone. This book has that high-brow rock journalism trying to be more than it needs to be air about it. Bozza includes copius amounts of information on the history of Detroit's motor industry, racial politics, feminism etc that don't relate to the story of Eminem but to the attitudes of wider America.
Bozza wrote this book by beginning each chapter with an anecdote about Eminem and then plucking a political or sociopolitical issue from it and then rabbiting on for 20-50 pages about the issue he'd chanced upon.
The quality of writing is clear, but then, you get that when the author is a journalist. The style of writing and relevance of content is what really made this book a sufferance to read. I wouldn't recommend this as the go to source for Eminem related reading, because its more of a lets put Marshall under the microscope and compare him to the social climate kind of deal.
Very disappointing.
Bozza wrote this book by beginning each chapter with an anecdote about Eminem and then plucking a political or sociopolitical issue from it and then rabbiting on for 20-50 pages about the issue he'd chanced upon.
The quality of writing is clear, but then, you get that when the author is a journalist. The style of writing and relevance of content is what really made this book a sufferance to read. I wouldn't recommend this as the go to source for Eminem related reading, because its more of a lets put Marshall under the microscope and compare him to the social climate kind of deal.
Very disappointing.
September 30, 2023
"Art is many things, but when it is true, anyone, from anywhere, at any time, can see it and feel it and understand the emotion beneath it, even if they don’t speak the language. If the feeling is pure, art can lead the whole world down the artist’s rabbit hole, at least for a minute. If that art is a song, everyone hears the message, even if they don’t like the words..."
Whatever You Say I Am was a somewhat decent book at times, but ultimately, I didn't feel it lived up to my expectations...
I have followed the rise of Eminem since I first heard his song "Just Don't Give a Fuck" in either late 1998, or early 1999 in my car, on a local underground college radio hip-hop show. His sound was unlike anything I had heard before, and soon he would blow up worldwide.
Author Anthony Bozza is a New York City-based writer and journalist who has written extensively for Rolling Stone and other magazines. Apparently, he had closer access to the rapper than any other journalist or author.
Anthony Bozza and Marshall Mathers:
The book opens with a decent intro, and Bozza writes with a style that is fairly engaging. Unfortunately, however, I was just not a fan of the formatting here. The narrative jumps around way too much, and does not flow in a chronological fashion. The writing follows along chronologically for a while, and then jumps back a few years, before jumping forward again. I'm not sure what the "fix" for this should have been, but I didn't feel that this formatting worked here.
In this quote, Bozza talks about the evolution of Marshall Mathers into slim Shady and Eminem:
The book loosely follows Eminem during the peak of his career; through his first few albums and the release of the film "8 Mile." Along the way, Bozza gives the reader a brief history of Hip Hop as a culture, as well as a history of rap music. Near the end of the book, he also takes the reader on a brief journey of the history of Detroity as a city, and the different music that it has spawned and contributed to.
Unfortunately, there is quite a lot of long-winded writing about "maleness," misogyny and other deep pontifications on how offensive Eminem is here. This got pretty annoying and downright grating at times. It felt like the author was pearl-clutching many times. Of course Eminem is offensive! That's his whole schtick, FFS! Although any balanced telling should touch on this, Bozza dragged it on for way more than it was worth here, IMO.
There's also not a lot of coherent or in-depth writing on Marhsall's early life here; his upbringing, his family life, his school life, etc. These topics are paid just a quick lip service. It would have been nice to have more information provided about his early life, so the reader could properly digest all the ingredients that ended up creating Eminem and Slim Shady. A missed opportunity for sure...
********************
Whatever You Say I Am had its moments, but ultimately fell short. For a book with such incredibly rich subject material, I sadly felt that the author did a lackluster job of this one...
2.5 stars.
Whatever You Say I Am was a somewhat decent book at times, but ultimately, I didn't feel it lived up to my expectations...
I have followed the rise of Eminem since I first heard his song "Just Don't Give a Fuck" in either late 1998, or early 1999 in my car, on a local underground college radio hip-hop show. His sound was unlike anything I had heard before, and soon he would blow up worldwide.
Author Anthony Bozza is a New York City-based writer and journalist who has written extensively for Rolling Stone and other magazines. Apparently, he had closer access to the rapper than any other journalist or author.
Anthony Bozza and Marshall Mathers:
The book opens with a decent intro, and Bozza writes with a style that is fairly engaging. Unfortunately, however, I was just not a fan of the formatting here. The narrative jumps around way too much, and does not flow in a chronological fashion. The writing follows along chronologically for a while, and then jumps back a few years, before jumping forward again. I'm not sure what the "fix" for this should have been, but I didn't feel that this formatting worked here.
In this quote, Bozza talks about the evolution of Marshall Mathers into slim Shady and Eminem:
"The Slim Shady EP laid the groundwork for The Slim Shady LP, executive-produced by Dr. Dre and released February 23, 1999. That included seven songs, three of which made it onto Eminem’s fulllength major-label debut: “I Just Don’t Give a Fuck,” “If I Had,” and “Just the Two of Us,” Eminem’s first murder ballad to his baby’s mother, Kim. The EP has all the Slim Shady essentials: flippant nihilism, self-loathing, destruction, acute battle raps, fucked-up family pathology, and comedy, both subtle and slapstick.
Although the EP is seven songs long, two are shortened, radioedit versions of other songs on the album. So in just five main songs are the roots of the blueprint of Eminem’s success. Slim Shady is his avenger, anointed for bad behavior, but the album also hints at the three-character harmony that would soon develop in Eminem’s music: Slim Shady, Marshall Mathers, and Eminem."
The book loosely follows Eminem during the peak of his career; through his first few albums and the release of the film "8 Mile." Along the way, Bozza gives the reader a brief history of Hip Hop as a culture, as well as a history of rap music. Near the end of the book, he also takes the reader on a brief journey of the history of Detroity as a city, and the different music that it has spawned and contributed to.
Unfortunately, there is quite a lot of long-winded writing about "maleness," misogyny and other deep pontifications on how offensive Eminem is here. This got pretty annoying and downright grating at times. It felt like the author was pearl-clutching many times. Of course Eminem is offensive! That's his whole schtick, FFS! Although any balanced telling should touch on this, Bozza dragged it on for way more than it was worth here, IMO.
There's also not a lot of coherent or in-depth writing on Marhsall's early life here; his upbringing, his family life, his school life, etc. These topics are paid just a quick lip service. It would have been nice to have more information provided about his early life, so the reader could properly digest all the ingredients that ended up creating Eminem and Slim Shady. A missed opportunity for sure...
********************
Whatever You Say I Am had its moments, but ultimately fell short. For a book with such incredibly rich subject material, I sadly felt that the author did a lackluster job of this one...
2.5 stars.
October 21, 2024
When this book actually covers Eminem, it is really quite good. However, it takes far too many random detours into history that I did not purchase this book for. I don't care about the political history of Detroit or the economic effects of the Reagan era for god's sake. I am here to read about Marshall Mathers.
This could have been an excellent book but it devolves too often into intellectual masturbation for no reason at all. I know this author has written other books on Marshall, so I'll check those out as well. I am hoping they actually focus more on him than this one did.
This could have been an excellent book but it devolves too often into intellectual masturbation for no reason at all. I know this author has written other books on Marshall, so I'll check those out as well. I am hoping they actually focus more on him than this one did.
July 9, 2019
A close up examination of the rise of Marshall Bruce Mathers III; the author delves into the underlying circumstances of what made him into a formidable rapper - relentless, unforgiving, barrage of verbal assaults coupled with the ability to weave narratives and a unique rhyme and musical style. The focus of his music often an assuage on the harshness of childhood, teenage and later years; also, his often explosive relationship with his mother and wife.
The book is somewhat sycophantic a quarter ways in, but the rest is a fairly accurate appraisal of the musical scene holistically, its evolution and influences on Eminem in particular. The book also showcases the landscape of rap from its birth to its darkest hour in the gangland style shooting of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur to the resurgence of rap as a materialistic grandioseness to the nihilistic, incendiary tendencies found in Eminem’s verses.
Midway through, the particular issue of proliferation and gratuity afforded him by his race and ability are drawn out and perused, amongst social awareness, barriers and the trials and tribulations of segregation versus integration endemic in the Mid West.
The later half focuses on the socio-economic rise and fall of Detroit – The Motor City. The backdrop of Marshall Mathers’ life, home to the once booming automotive industry to its decline and decrepitude, also on a cultural level as Motown moved house.
The personal level of connection the author has with Eminem adds credence and some of the narratives are reminiscent of the story telling style of ‘Guilty Conscience’ in light of the author’s first few encounters with the rapper and his life. Also reveals the man behind the masks (Eminem, Slim Shady), the true Marshall Mathers past the streetwise, witty, entrepreneur, the deeper, calmer persona, doting father, someone who just wants to be left alone and free from the repressive economic drudgery and enslavement. In his ability to translate that to verse while transcending and achieving his goals lies the ubiquitous appeal he has garnered in his loyal fans. This book is an excellent read for fans of Eminem as well as a primer for the uninitiated to the hip-hop scene.
https://www.bookdepository.com/Whatev...
The book is somewhat sycophantic a quarter ways in, but the rest is a fairly accurate appraisal of the musical scene holistically, its evolution and influences on Eminem in particular. The book also showcases the landscape of rap from its birth to its darkest hour in the gangland style shooting of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur to the resurgence of rap as a materialistic grandioseness to the nihilistic, incendiary tendencies found in Eminem’s verses.
Midway through, the particular issue of proliferation and gratuity afforded him by his race and ability are drawn out and perused, amongst social awareness, barriers and the trials and tribulations of segregation versus integration endemic in the Mid West.
The later half focuses on the socio-economic rise and fall of Detroit – The Motor City. The backdrop of Marshall Mathers’ life, home to the once booming automotive industry to its decline and decrepitude, also on a cultural level as Motown moved house.
The personal level of connection the author has with Eminem adds credence and some of the narratives are reminiscent of the story telling style of ‘Guilty Conscience’ in light of the author’s first few encounters with the rapper and his life. Also reveals the man behind the masks (Eminem, Slim Shady), the true Marshall Mathers past the streetwise, witty, entrepreneur, the deeper, calmer persona, doting father, someone who just wants to be left alone and free from the repressive economic drudgery and enslavement. In his ability to translate that to verse while transcending and achieving his goals lies the ubiquitous appeal he has garnered in his loyal fans. This book is an excellent read for fans of Eminem as well as a primer for the uninitiated to the hip-hop scene.
https://www.bookdepository.com/Whatev...
October 24, 2018
The parts about Eminem were great. Unfortunately 90% of the book is this author’s, and other critics’, analysis of Eminem and not about his “life” or “times” at all.
July 9, 2009
I have only managed to see Eminem live once, at the Reading Festival, I think around 2003 or thereabouts. I was expecting something really great but I was a little disappointed. But I have remained a fan
I have had this book for quite a while and finally got around to reading it. It's an excellent view of both his early life and his early rap success. If you're a fan of Mr Mathers you've probably already read this, if you haven't then I recommend that you do!
I have had this book for quite a while and finally got around to reading it. It's an excellent view of both his early life and his early rap success. If you're a fan of Mr Mathers you've probably already read this, if you haven't then I recommend that you do!
December 26, 2010
I was so bored reading this book. The author is a writer from Rolling Stones Magazine and was on the road alot with EM. When I start a book I have to finish it and it seemed like months I finally finished reading it. It took forever to keep picking up the book to read and finish it. If you like EM and you want to read about him, I don't recommend this one. It's a bore!
January 16, 2023
If you're looking for a fluff piece on the beginnings of one of the most talented men on the planet.....this isn't it. HOWEVER, it's definitely an interesting read: one part biography, one part history lesson, one part social commentary all add up to get us closer to understanding the phenomenon that is Eminem. Looking forward to continuing the journey in the second entry from Bozza.
February 8, 2021
I love Eminem so this was so fascinating. Eminem in the modern era is so private, but when this book was written, the author actually got to hang with him multiple times in varied locations and interview him. It's majorly interesting.
February 13, 2020
Like others said, there is almost nothing about Eminem as a biography and that "almost" are just few sentences.
August 2, 2024
Mi aspettavo una biografia, o almeno qualcosa di più simile ad essa, invece mi sono trovata di fronte ad una serie di articoli un po' allungati che poco e niente dicono dell'uomo e dell'artista, tranne della parti più macchiettistiche.
August 8, 2024
..autors bijis klāt Eminema pirmsākumos un grāmatā piefiksējis ne tikai to, ko visi jau zina, bet vienu otru aizkadra stāstu.
October 24, 2013
Anthony Bozza wrote a biography on the artist Eminem A.K.A Marshall Bruce Mathers III A.K.A Slim Shady. Bozza depicts the life of the artist through his personal experiences. As well as he captures the view of Eminem through the eyes of those who know him well such as Paul Rosenburg (Music Industry Producer) and through articles and magazines like New York Times and the Rolling Stones. The biography goes in depth of the Artists accomplishments; Lose Yourself, 8 Mile and Eminem’s Grammy awards. Not only glamorizes his accomplishment but reveals the hard times such as the difficulty Eminem faced as being a white rapper in a predominantly black industry, the struggle of growing up in such a rough area of the nations and even the start of a career with a failing album.
In My opinion this biography was spectacular. At first sight of this book caught my attention which is rare. I had and as I read the book it had me hooked in a heartbeat. The biography gave the life of the phenomenal rapper Eminem and although the noval was not in chronological order, it astonished me how the life of Eminem was told. Bozza used a line from a song of Eminem to list each chapter and told the background of why this line has been used in Eminem’s song. I enjoyed having each chapter title because it had me thinking of the flow of the song and other lyrics and the meaning to give me an idea of what the chapter will be. This biography made me feel as if I knew Eminem personally which I really felt it was impossible because after hearing almost every song published by Eminem I have felt I understood what made up Eminem. What made me feel as I knew Eminem was that the lyrics I constantly hear from his songs, I found out why he writes them and how they make up his story, I found out the influences that creates a song. Although I did enjoy the book greatly I upset me that there was not interviews with Eminem and others. Although that was not the case, it would not keep me from reading this book multiple times.
In My opinion this biography was spectacular. At first sight of this book caught my attention which is rare. I had and as I read the book it had me hooked in a heartbeat. The biography gave the life of the phenomenal rapper Eminem and although the noval was not in chronological order, it astonished me how the life of Eminem was told. Bozza used a line from a song of Eminem to list each chapter and told the background of why this line has been used in Eminem’s song. I enjoyed having each chapter title because it had me thinking of the flow of the song and other lyrics and the meaning to give me an idea of what the chapter will be. This biography made me feel as if I knew Eminem personally which I really felt it was impossible because after hearing almost every song published by Eminem I have felt I understood what made up Eminem. What made me feel as I knew Eminem was that the lyrics I constantly hear from his songs, I found out why he writes them and how they make up his story, I found out the influences that creates a song. Although I did enjoy the book greatly I upset me that there was not interviews with Eminem and others. Although that was not the case, it would not keep me from reading this book multiple times.
August 22, 2007
The author, Anthony Bozza has interviewed Eminem countless time for Spin, Rolling Stone and other highly creditable magazines. In addition, he has spent days on end touring and getting to know Eminem in his world; mostly 8 Mile Road, Double-wide in Detroit. I say this because it makes the book very creditable and a very good read.
With this said, "Curtain Call" was the very first CD I downloaded on my IPOD some years back and I never looked back. Get past the woman bashing, and harsh language (some is real, some is an act) and you have an extremely talented young musician with something to say and more importantly, something worth listening to.
With this said, "Curtain Call" was the very first CD I downloaded on my IPOD some years back and I never looked back. Get past the woman bashing, and harsh language (some is real, some is an act) and you have an extremely talented young musician with something to say and more importantly, something worth listening to.
December 30, 2012
Decent biography. A bit sloppy with the presentation and organization. Jumped around too much. Good quotes by notable writers and music artists. I think I'd like to find an updated Eminem bio, and one done a little better.
July 18, 2015
his life is so fasinating!
September 18, 2020
Not the biography I thought it was
But still definitely worth the read. It gives life and character to Detroit and the history of hip hop. I remember alot of this period and it's true the guy was everywhere. My sister got me the marshal matters LP for christmas in 01. We even seen 8 mile in theaters and loved it. Kind of old school as it is written immediately after eminem show. An album that me and my cousin used to play vice city and drink pints of everclear while no one was looking to and has only aged masterfully with time. Anyone with a taste for the scene or curious to know what life was like around that time would definitely appreciate this.
But still definitely worth the read. It gives life and character to Detroit and the history of hip hop. I remember alot of this period and it's true the guy was everywhere. My sister got me the marshal matters LP for christmas in 01. We even seen 8 mile in theaters and loved it. Kind of old school as it is written immediately after eminem show. An album that me and my cousin used to play vice city and drink pints of everclear while no one was looking to and has only aged masterfully with time. Anyone with a taste for the scene or curious to know what life was like around that time would definitely appreciate this.
July 31, 2023
This book is a complete oxymoron- fantastically interesting and extremely tiresome. The book is less about Eminem and more about the history of Hip-Hop and Detroit; it illustrates the societal unrest and deprivation of a disillusioned American youth who had been excluded from the American Dream. The background to Eminem's life is eye-opening and garners an unparalleled empathy for the turn-of-the century youth. However, Bozza's writing style is cumbersome; unnecessarily long sentences, peppered with comma splices and parenthesis, (often not grammatically correct) serve to confuse the reader and detect from what is a fascinating story.
March 26, 2025
.This book was written in 2003, so we are missing a little over 20 years on the life and development of Eminem. The book was decent, but definitely lacked a more developed look at Marshall Mathers and really added in a lot of extra information that, while relevant to the background, really did nothing to add to the subject matter. I learned some things I hadn't known and got an interesting perspective on others things, but I'm still hoping a more recent, deeper memoir of Marshall Mathers is written.
July 14, 2025
Really enjoyed this book! I may be biased being a big Eminem fan, very factual and well written it did become a bit repetitive towards the end but all in all I thought it was brilliant. And the only reason it became repetitive was because it was going through various artists and celebrities opinions on Eminem. Well done to the author Athony Bozza you can tell he’s a true journalist and as he mentioned in the book he’s met and known Eminem, Slim Shady and Marshel Mathers. A brilliant biography ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
August 2, 2024
For a book titled “the life and times of Eminem” I expected it to be more about Eminem, a lot of the information isn’t about him, and there’s way too much focus on him being white. Generally this is the type of book I’d devour in a day, but this one was not good. There was very little focus on Eminem’s life. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.
January 25, 2025
Eminem is a fascinating artist, love his music or hate it. I felt the book made some great points on his relevance to American pop culture and how his position has evolved over time. But I also felt it could have been more tightly written as it did drag at multiple points along the way so it felt repetitive by the end.
April 17, 2020
Although it did not talk about Eminem as it should have done as the title of the book suggests, the writing of the social and political culture was well presented, perhaps a good example of academic writing
November 5, 2021
I was expecting a true bibliography, personally it missed the mark. It had good additions about history (music, Detroit, authors/critics) however I feel I didn’t get enough info on Eminem as I would’ve liked.
November 21, 2021
Not written very well, and strangely there is often a lack of focus on the main character. More a history of Detroit and hip hop than a history of Eminem. If you've seen 8 - Mile, (or if you haven't), you can safely skip this one.
June 8, 2023
1% about Eminem. 99% about everyone else in the industry during that time!
I got half way through and gave up. The only thing I learnt about him was the time he got beat up and had to run to his nans for safety.
The rest of the book felt like a fact book about the charts!
I got half way through and gave up. The only thing I learnt about him was the time he got beat up and had to run to his nans for safety.
The rest of the book felt like a fact book about the charts!
May 24, 2021
Most of the book was about rock/hip-hop history, not much to do about Eminem!
September 26, 2021
One of the best & also most tragic life of a brilliant superstar. Super raw & also inspiring. One of my first books to read as a kid. Quite a heavy story but one that is also uplifting.
January 16, 2022
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March 17, 2022
I liked this book a lot. It made me learn about Eminem, his child, and his beside music. 9/10 :)
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