Eminem Turns 40: Happy Birthday, Slim Shady!
Eminem turns 40, leaving an entire generation of rap fans feeling extremely old. Today is Slim Shady’s birthday, which means the man also known among certain circles as Marshall Bruce Mathers III is officially over the hill.
According to MTV News, the musician’s legion of fans have taken to Twitter to send Eminem an abundance of birthday wishes. While some were more than a little ecstatic that they share their birthday with Slim Shady himself, others were quick to wish their “husband” nothing but love and joy on the day of his birth.
The Detroit Free Press reports that Eminem didn’t always celebrate his true birthday. When the rapper released The Slim Shady LP in 1999, the marketing wizards attempted to shave two years off the artist’s life when his breakthrough single hit airwaves. Instead of 26, his handlers declared the rapper to be 24. The secret was soon out of the proverbial bag when the Free Press got their hands on Slim Shady’s official birth certificate.
Since achieving mainstream success with The Slim Shady LP, Eminem has received numerous kudos and accolades from fans and critics alike. In addition to coming in at 83 on Rolling Stone magazine’s “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”, he was called the “Best Rapper Alive” by Vibe in 2008.
According to Wikipedia, Eminem’s 2000 effort The Marshall Mathers LP became the second fastest-selling album in US history. What’s more, the album has been named as one of the best hip-hop albums of all time by such publications at Time, XXL, and Rolling Stone.
Just because Eminem is 40 doesn’t mean that he’s slowing down anytime soon. Next year, the acclaimed rapper is set to release his highly-anticipated eighth studio album. Producer No I.D recently told MTV News that he was working on some material with the birthday boy.
“He’s one of the best, I want to work with one of the best and try and give some music contributions. I think that would be one of the next steps in that lineage of what I’m trying to do,” No I.D. explained.
Anyone who has ever said you can’t be relevant at 40-years-old obviously hasn’t wished Eminem a happy birthday.
