Not Afraid
The Evolution of Eminem
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4.9 • 8 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
THE SEQUEL TO THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER WHATEVER YOU SAY I AM, CHRONICLING THE PAST TWENTY YEARS OF RAPPER EMINEM'S LIFE, BASED ON EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS WITH THE ARTIST, HIS FRIENDS, AND ASSOCIATES
"A passionate look at the Detroit rapper's music . . . an expert and thoughtful assessment." - Booklist
In 1999, a former dishwasher from Detroit named Marshall Bruce Mathers III became the most controversial and polarizing musical artist in the world. He was an outlier, a white artist creating viable art in a black medium, telling stories with such verbal dexterity, nimble wit, and shocking honesty that his music and persona resonated universally. In short, Eminem changed the landscape of pop culture as we knew it.
In 2006, at the height of his fame and one of the biggest-selling artists in music history, Eminem all but disappeared. Beset by nonstop controversy, bewildering international fame, a debilitating drug problem, and personal tragedy, he became reclusive, withdrawing to his Detroit-area compound. He struggled with weight gain and an addiction to prescription pills that nearly took his life. Over the next five years, Eminem got sober, relapsed, then finally got and stayed clean with the help of his unlikely friend and supporter, Elton John. He then triumphantly returned to a very different landscape, yet continued his streak of number one albums and multiplatinum singles.
Not Afraid picks up where rock journalist Anthony Bozza's bestselling Whatever You Say I Am left off. Capturing Eminem's toughest years in his own words, as well the insights of his closest friends and creative collaborators, this book chronicles the musical, personal, and spiritual growth of one of hip-hop's most enduring and enigmatic figures.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Bozza follows Whatever You Say I Am: The Life and Times of Eminem with this uneven, hagiographic biography of Detroit rapper Eminem. After a crisp introduction from LL Cool J that calls out the "little extra turbo boost" Eminem's career received from being white, Bozza follows the early success of Eminem's first albums and his starring in the movie 8 Mile. Eminem struggled with family strife, addiction, and creative drift, Bozza writes, all compounded by the toxicity of fame and the 2006 shooting death of his best friend, rapper Proof, his "anchor to reality." Picking up in earnest after Eminem went to rehab two years later (where he was eventually helped by Elton John), Bozza turns from biographer to adoring music critic, cataloguing albums, collaborations, and professional beefs. Filled with lucid dissections of rap technicalities, the book does a solid job of placing Eminem in the modern hip-hop scene, but too often the author falls back on lavishing kudos ("the greatest wordsmith rap has ever known," for example) and tiresome breakdowns of sales figures and critical blurbs of each record. While there are sparks throughout, this ends up feeling like a rote account of the otherwise electrifying career of Eminem.
