History Music / TheSlimShadyLP

Slim Shady is not responsible for your actions. Upon purchasing this album, [[DoNotTryThisAtHome you have agreed not to try this at home]].''\\

''The Slim Shady LP'' is the second studio album and major-label debut of Music/{{Eminem}}, released on February 26, 1999.

His first studio album, ''Infinite'' (1996), was a flop, only selling around 1,000 copies and evoking many a complaint of his similarities to Music/{{Nas}} and Music/JayZ.

Following a suicide attempt and the invention of an angry and violent (yet darkly humorous) alter ego, Em released ''The Slim Shady EP'' a year later, and [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel things started turning around]]. Most notably, the EP gained the attention of Music/DrDre, who quickly wanted to contact Em and work on a major-label release with him. The result was this album -- a look into Em's psyche both through the cartoonish obscenity of his alter ego Slim Shady (introduced in the namesake EP) and [[CreatorBreakdown his real-life struggles with poverty and bullying among other subjects]].

The album won the UsefulNotes/GrammyAward for Best Rap Album and would go on to be certified quadruple platinum by the RIAA, elevating Em from underground buzz to mainstream celebrity.

* ArcWords: "If I Had":
--> ''I'm tired of...''

** "My Name Is" got quite the cleansing in the non-explicit version, replacing some of the crasser rhymes with more cartoonish and family-friendly stuff ("raping lesbians" is replaced with "running over pedestrians in a spaceship"), or stuff that straight-up made ''no sense'' (vodka is replaced with ''[[FrothyMugsOfWater Kool-Aid]]?'').

* DepravedHomosexual: "Ken Kaniff" about a gay man who calls up Eminem with lewd suggestions.
* DespairEventHorizon: "Rock Bottom" is essentially Em at the lowest point of his life.
* TheDogBitesBack: "Brain Damage" has many fantasized scenarios of Em getting back at bullies that have done ill will towards him. For example near the end, after getting brutally assaulted by a bully (the principal even comes in only to assist the bully in beating him), Em plays dead to get his assailants to leave. Once they do, he turns the tables by defeating the bully with appliances from the janitor's closet.

** "My Fault" features a tale about a girl who overdoses on psychedelic mushrooms at a rave.

I'm your brother when you need, some new weed to set you free\\
You know me, I'm your friend, when you need a Mini Thin\\
(I'm Slim Shady...) I'm Shady!''

* MasturbationMeansSexualFrustration: "My Name Is":
-->''All my life I was very deprived\\
I ain't had a woman in years\\
'And my palms are too hairy to hide''
* MickeyMousing: All of the songs have sound effects and comedic voices after each line to illustrate what just has been said.
* MoodWhiplash: The album veers erratically from slapstick BlackComedy ("My Name Is", "Role Model", "Guilty Conscience"), chilling {{Horrorcore}} ("'97 Bonnie and Clyde") and serious tracks in which Eminem describes his bleak and frustrating working-class existence ("Rock Bottom", "If I Had") or traumatic personal experiences ("Brain Damage").

** "My Name Is" namedrops Music/NineInchNails, Music/TheSpiceGirls, ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk, Creator/PamelaAnderson and Music/KrissKross. The music video also makes reference to Creator/JohnnyCarson, Series/TheBradyBunch, Music/MarilynManson, UsefulNotes/BillClinton and Monica Lewinsky.
*** The line preceding the Nine Inch Nails reference ("Hi kids, do you like violence?") is actually bowdlerised in the clean version to eschew "violence" for "Music/{{Primus}}" (another 90s rock band), effectively killing two birds with one stone.

*** In the second verse of the song, where Dre and Shady are debating over the conscience of a 21-year-old man about to take advantage of a 15-year-old girl, Dre tries dissuading him by bringing up the film ''Film/{{Kids}}'', which contains [[spoiler:an unconscious rape scene that resulted in the rapist contracting AIDS]], while Shady brings up the rapper Sun Doobiest, who later made a porn movie.

*** Near the end of the song, Shady references Dr. Dre's earlier album ''Music/StraightOuttaCompton'' with Music/{{NWA}}'', rapping, "Mr. Dre, Mr. N.W.A, Mr. AK / coming straight outta Compton, y'all better make way".

I'll be standin' by the Loch Ness monster"''

* ImmediateSelfContradiction: In the last verse of "Guilty Conscience", Dre tries to convince a man not to kill his wife and the man he caught her in bed with. Em then rebuts by pointing out that Dre has his own history of violence, having assaulted TV presenter Dee Barnes in 1991 and presented a gangster image as part of Music/{{NWA}}. Dre reacts indignantly to this characterization of him...by threatening to kill Em.

* ImmediateSelfContradiction: In the last verse of "Guilty Conscience", Dre is trying to convince a man not to kill his wife and the man he caught her in bed with. Em then rebuts

** This joke gets even more elaborate in the wake of "Cold Wind Blows" (from ''Recovery''), which was released just a year before ''H:TS'', wherein God tells Slim Shady that He will send him to Hell if he does not change his ways. ''[[GodIsEvil Apparently,]] [[FridgeHorror he didn't]]''.

* HypocriteHasAPoint: "Guilty Conscience" revolves around Dr. Dre and Eminem being the respective [[GoodAngelBadAngel angel and devil]] of several men's consciences. Dre spends the song trying to talk the men out of committing crimes, but in the song's final verse, Em calls out Dre for doing so while having a criminal history of his own, bringing up his 1991 assault of TV host Dee Barnes and the violent gangster persona he had when he was in Music/{{NWA}}. He asks Dre how he can tell others not to be violent, and Dre replies that it's because they "don't need to go the same route that I went". He's on the right side of every argument he gets into in the song (trying to prevent a store robbery, the rape of a minor, and the murder of a woman and the man she cheated on her husband with), but Em pointing this out [[spoiler:is enough to [[DownerEnding make him give up the struggle]] [[TheBadGuyWins and turn to the dark side]]]].

* IAmSong: "My Name Is" and "I'm Shady".

til she passes out and she forgot how she got there!''\\
'''Dr. Dre:''' ''Man, ain't you ever seen that one movie, Film/{{Kids}}?''\\

* RealLifeWritesThePlot: A lot of songs have autobiographical elements, though Eminem often dramatizes things a bit more for effect.
** The line about Music/TheSpiceGirls in "My Name Is" was inspired by the fact that many radio [=DJs=] asked him which Spice Girl he would date if he had the choice.

** Eminem attacks his own mother in "My Name Is" by rapping, "When I was little I used to get so hungry I would throw fits / How you gonna breastfeed me, Mom?! You ain't got no tits!" She filed a $10,000,000 slander lawsuit for the assumption that she does drugs in that song and claimed in her autobiography, "This line was horrible and upsetting, because I'd contracted toxemia-blood poisoning when I gave birth to him and hadn't been able to breast-feed." After a two-year-long trial, she was awarded $25,000, of which she received $1,600 after legal fees.
** Eminem also attacks his own wife, Kim, in "'97 Bonnie & Clyde" and even felt the need of letting his then infant daughter go to the recording studio and make a vocal contribution to the latter song.
** "Guilty Conscience" has Music/DrDre play the voice of the conscience, but Shady wonders why he would listen to him with the line: "You gonna take advice from somebody who slapped Dee Barnes?" , in reference to a real life incident where Dre allegedly either beat up or just pushed TV presenter Dee Barnes at a party. Dre was fined, put on probation and community service for this. Eminem was nervous what Dre would think of this line, but to his delight he "fell out of his chair laughing."

-->''Look at the store clerk, she's older than Creator/GeorgeBurns''.

** "Guilty Conscience" references the age of centerian comedian George Burns.
--->''Look at the store clerk, she's older than Creator/GeorgeBurns''
** "Guilty Conscience" also namedrops the unconscious rape scene in the film ''Film/{{Kids}}'' as well as rapper Sun Doobiest, who later made a porn movie.
--->'''Slim Shady:''' Fuck this bitch right here on the spot, bare''\\
'til she passes out and she forgot how she got there?''\\
'''Dr. Dre:''' ''Man, ain't you ever seen that one movie, ''Film/{{Kids}}?''\\
'''Slim Shady:''' ''No, but I seen the porno with Sun Doobiest!''
** Lastly "Guilty Conscience" also references Dr. Dre's earlier gangsta rap album ''Music/StraightOuttaCompton'' with Music/{{NWA}}''.
--->''(...) Uhh-ahh, temper, temper, Mr. Dre, Mr. Music/{{NWA}}, Mr. AK,\\
Coming Music/StraightOuttaCompton, y'all better make way\\
How in the fuck you gonna tell this man not to be violent?''

** "As The World Turns" references the character Les Nessman from ''Series/WKRPInCincinnati'', loss of weight book author Jenny Craig and ''WesternAnimation/InspectorGadget''

** "Cum On Everybody"

From Music/KurtCobain's head when he shot himself dead''
** "Cum On Everybody" namedrops Music/TheBeastieBoys, Music/KidRock and the Loch Ness Monster.
--->''Got bitches on my jock out in East Detroit\\
Cause they think that I'm a mothafuckin' Beastie Boy\\

They was like: "Gee, I don't know who he might be?\\
I told 'em: "Meet me at Kid Rock's next concert\\
I'll be standin' by the Loch Ness monster''

* STDImmunity: Averted in many songs

--->''You thought I was ill and now I'm even more so\\

And if I told you I had AIDS y'all would play it\\

It's not syphilis, and as for being AIDS infested\\

And smacked her so hard I knocked her clothes backwards like Music/KrisKross''

* HypocriteHasAPoint: "Guilty Conscience" revolves around Dr. Dre and Eminem being the respective [[GoodAngelBadAngel angel and devil]] of several men's consciences. Dre spends the song trying to talk the men out of committing crimes, but in the song's final verse, Em calls out Dre for doing so while having a criminal history of his own, bringing up his 1991 assault of TV host Dee Barnes and the violent gangster persona he had when he was in Music/{{NWA}}. He asks Dre how he can tell others not to be violent, and Dre replies that it's because they "don't need to go the same route that I went". He's on the right side of every argument he gets into in the song (trying to dissuade a store robbery, the rape of a minor, and the murder of a woman and the man she cheated on her husband with), but Em pointing this out [[spoiler:is enough to [[DownerEnding make him give up the struggle]] [[TheBadGuyWins and turn him to the dark side]]]].

* HypocriteHasAPoint: "Guilty Conscience" revolves around Dr. Dre and Eminem being the respective [[GoodAngelBadAngel angel and devil]] of several men's consciences. Dre spends the song trying to talk the men out of committing crimes, but in the song's final verse, Em calls out Dre for doing so while having a criminal history of his own, bringing up his 1991 assault of TV host Dee Barnes and the gangsta rap persona he had when he was in Music/{{NWA}}. He asks Dre how he can tell others not to be violent, and Dre replies that it's because they "don't need to go the same route that I went". He's on the right side of every argument he gets into in the song (trying to dissuade a store robbery, the rape of a minor, and the murder of a woman and the man she cheated on her husband with), but Em pointing this out [[spoiler:is enough to [[DownerEnding make him give up the struggle]] [[TheBadGuyWins and turn him to the dark side]]]].

* HypocriteHasAPoint: "Guilty Conscience" revolves around Dr. Dre and Eminem being the respective [[GoodAngelBadAngel angel and devil]] of several men's consciences. Dre spends the song trying to talk the men out of committing crimes, but in the song's final verse, Em points out that Dre has a criminal history of his own, bringing up his 1991 assault of TV host Dee Barnes and the violent gangsta rap persona he had when he was in Music/{{NWA}}. He asks Dre how he can tell others not to be violent, and Dre replies that he does so because they "don't need to go the same route that I went".

** Also happened to "Guilty Conscience"; for example, "cut this bitch's head off!" was replaced with "cut this chicken's head off!".
* BrickJoke: In "Bad Meets Evil", his song with then-friend Royce da 5'9, the end of the chorus goes "See you in Hell for the sequel." Afterwards, they had a lengthy falling out. Once their mutual friend Proof died, they patched up their issues and released their joint album ''Hell: The Sequel'' in 2011. Given how long it took Em and Royce to get around to making it, one can say we saw the sequel in DevelopmentHell.
** This joke gets even more elaborate when in "Cold Wind Blows" (from ''Recovery''), which was released just a year before ''H:TS'', there's a few lines where God tells Slim Shady that He will send him to Hell if he does not change his ways. ''[[GodIsEvil Apparently,]] [[FridgeHorror he didn't]]''.

** "My Fault" ends with [[spoiler:Susan overdosing after Em gives her a bag of shrooms and she ends up eating all of them. The song closes on Em bawling and trying to get Susan to [[PleaseWakeUp wake up]].]]
** "Guilty Consience" has [[spoiler:a GoodAngelBadAngel scenario that ends with [[TheBadGuyWins Eminem winning as the bad angel]] and getting the good angel (Dre) to turn to the dark side, not to mention how he successfully convinced someone to commit rape on an underage girl.]]

* GoodAngelBadAngel: The basis of "Guilty Conscience", with Music/DrDre playing the good angel and Eminem playing the bad angel (reasonably). [[spoiler:[[TheBadGuyWins Eminem wins 2 out of the 3 scenarios, and with his last victory he gets Dre to turn to the dark side.]]]]

** "Public Service Announcement"
--->'''Music/DrDre''': ''Anything else?''\\

Slim Shady is not responsible for your actions. [[DoNotTryThisAtHome Upon purchasing this album, you have agreed not to try this at home.]]''\\
[-A-anything else?-]\\

[[caption-width-right:330:''You're all I got in this world\\
I would never give you up for nothin''']]

\\

\\
Slim Shady is not responsible for your actions. [[DoNotTryThisAtHome Upon purchasing this album, you have agreed not to try this at home]].''\\
\\

\\

-->--"Public Service Announcement ([[SpokenWordInMusic Skit]])"

[[caption-width-right:330:''Just the two of us...'']]

-->--"Public Service Announcement"

->''"Hi, kids! Do you like violence?"''
-->-- "My Name Is"

!! ''I just found out my mom does more tropes than I do'':

* AnythingThatMoves: Referenced in "My Name Is".
--> ''I spit when I talk. I'll fuck anything that walks.''

** "My Fault" ends with [[spoiler:Susan overdosing after Em gives her a bag of shrooms and she ends up eating all of the contents inside it. To make an already bitter ending devastating, we hear Em bawling and trying to get Susan to PleaseWakeUp.]]

* FrothyMugsOfWater: The clean version of "My Name Is" took the "drank a fifth of vodka" line and replaced "vodka" with... Kool-Aid?

** "Brain Damage" addresses Eminem's childhood experiences with being bullied at school and going into a coma as a result. [=DeAngelo=] Bailey, one of the people accused of being a bully in the song, filed a lawsuit, but the judge later dismissed the case. Eminem also blames his teachers and his mother for not helping him. In reality his mum sued the school for not protecting her child better. The line where the principal too beats up Eminem is also fantasy.
** Eminem wrote "Rock Bottom" after being fired from his cooking job at a restaurant.

* ADateWithRosiePalms: "My Name Is":
-->''All my life I was very deprived\\
I ain't had a woman in years\\
'And my palms are too hairy to hide''

''The Slim Shady LP'' (1999) is the second album and major-label debut of Music/{{Eminem}}, and it's safe to say it came at a time when he needed it most.

In the meantime, following an unsuccessful suicide attempt, and inventing an angry and violent (yet darkly humorous) alter ego, he released ''The Slim Shady EP'' a year later, and [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel things started turning around]]. Most notably, the EP gained the attention of Music/DrDre, who quickly wanted to contact Em and work on a major-label release with him. The result was this very album -- a look into Em's psyche both through the cartoonish obscenity of his alter ego Slim Shady (introduced in the namesake EP) and [[RealLifeWritesThePlot his real-life struggles with poverty and bullying among other subjects]].

The album would go on to be certified quadruple platinum by the RIAA. In the wake of ''SSLP''[='=]s release, Em went from an underground nobody to an overnight mainstream celebrity. Additionally, ''SSLP'' won the UsefulNotes/GrammyAward for Best Rap Album.

In the meantime, following an unsuccessful suicide attempt, and inventing an angry and violent (and sightlier goofier) alter ego, he released ''The Slim Shady EP'' a year later, and [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel things started turning around]]. Most notably, the EP gained the attention of Music/DrDre, who quickly wanted to contact Em and work on a major-label release with him. The result was this very album -- a look into Em's psyche both through the cartoonish obscenity of his alter ego Slim Shady (introduced in the namesake EP) and [[RealLifeWritesThePlot his real-life struggles with poverty and bullying among other subjects]].

->''[[EstablishingCharacterMoment "Hi, kids! Do you like violence?"]]''

* RefrainFromAssuming: Technically "The Slim Shady '''EP'''" (1997) was the first appearance of his Slim Shady alter ego, but many people assume he debuted on this album. The songs "If I Had" and "Just Don't Give A Fuck" also debuted on this EP first, while the EP track "Just the Two Of Us" was retitled as "'97 Bonnie & Clyde", which was put on the LP. But the EP only started selling when ''The Slim Shady LP'' became an unexpected hit.

* GagPenis: One particularly memorable bit in "As the World Turns" has Em whipping out his [[WesternAnimation/InspectorGadget "go-go-gadget dick"]] that [[UpToEleven causes an earthquake and power outage]] upon hitting the ground.

After an unsuccessful suicide attempt, he released ''The Slim Shady EP'' a year later, and [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel things started turning around]]. Most notably, the EP gained the attention of Music/DrDre, who quickly wanted to contact Em and work on a major-label release with him. The result was this very album -- a look into Em's psyche both through the cartoonish obscenity of his alter ego Slim Shady (introduced in the namesake EP) and [[RealLifeWritesThePlot his real-life struggles with poverty and bullying among other subjects]].

-->--"My Name Is"

** In "Just Don't Give a Fuck", Eminem disses other white rappers like Music/{{Everlast}}, Music/{{Miilkbone}} and Music/VanillaIce, who'd all write diss tracks aimed at Eminem. Everlast had a feud with Eminem, Miilkbone released "Dear Slim" and "Presenting Miilkbone", and Vanilla Ice released "Exhale" and "Hip Hop Rules".