Encore (Deluxe Version)

Encore closes a six-year period in which Eminem was the most popular, powerful, and controversial rapper in the world. Over the course of his first three albums he allowed his split personalities to run wild, and on Encore one can feel an undercurrent of exhaustion, and even cynicism. “Like Toy Soldiers” looks at the senselessness of Em’s feuds with Source magazine owner Benzino and Murder Inc. crew: “And even though the battle is won I feel like we lost it / I spent so much energy on it, honestly I'm exhausted / And I'm so caught in it, I almost feel I'm the one who caused it / This ain't what I'm in hip-hop for, it's not why I got in it.” Songs like “Rain Man,” “Just Lose It,” “My 1st Single,” and “A*s Like That” capture the irreverent insight and trademark mischief that made Slim Shady a star, but this feels like a farewell to the persona Eminem spent years building. As he prepares to cede the spotlight, Eminem leaves to his legion of fans two parting messages: an autobiography traced through music (“Yellow Brick Road”) and a final call to future rebellion (“Mosh”).