When Eminem stopped our Sam reaching the top
TWO years after releasing his debut single, American rapper Eminem finally cracked the top ten in the US and reached the UK (and Irish) number one spot for the first time with ‘ The Real Slim Shady’.
The lead single from his third album ‘ The Marshall Mathers LP’, the track was put together just in time for its inclusion on the album in response to pressure from record company Interscope for a hit song that would guarantee radio play and fuel album sales.
On ‘ The Real Slim Shady’ Eminem’s alter ego blasts pop culture, boy bands and a multitude of celebrities, including Christina Aguilera who reacted angrily to the reference, calling Eminem a ‘pig’.
An edited version of the song was released for radio play, but two radio stations in Wisconsin and Colorado were each fined $7,000 for playing the ‘offensive’, unedited version. The fines were rescinded after the rap industry argued this was a violation of free speech.
‘ The Real Slim Shady’ was a multi-award winner, claiming MTV Video Music Awards gongs for Best Video and Best Male Video, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance. ‘ The Marshall Mathers LP’ also won for Best Rap Album.
In the 20 years since his first UK number one, Eminem has topped that chart eight more times. In the US he’s topped the Billboard Hot 100 on five occasions. He has had estimated worldwide sales of more than 220 million records.
AT the age of just 17 Samantha Mumba had the world at her feet back in 2000. Her first four singles were huge hits in her native Ireland, two topping the charts and two peaking at No. 2. She never reached number one in the UK but debut single
‘Gotta Tell You’ came within a whisker. If it wasn’t for
Eminem, who knows...
The song from Mumba’s debut (and only) studio album also did well in the
US where it soared to number 4.
‘Gotta Tell You’ has since been listed in Billboard’s
100 Catchiest Choruses of the 21st Century.
While her music success was short lived, Mumba, who now lives in LA, has sold over 15 million records around the world.