October 14, 2024

Eminem made a very rare appearance this week as he surprised fans at a London pop-up for his new album, The Death of Slim Shady.

Popping up on the first of the two-day event on Wednesday (July 17), the elusive Detroit rapper happily posed for pictures and signed autographs for the many fans in attendance across the pond.

In addition to custom build-outs like an open casket filled with roses, the experience, which was in collaboration with Complex, featured an exclusive capsule collection of tees, hoodies and hats, as well as an Em-focused vinyl collection.

Prior to London, the The Death of Slim Shady pop-up spent two days in Los Angeles — though Em didn’t make it out to that one.

Eminem’s new album The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce) is set to make a big splash on the Billboard charts, judging by its first-week sales projections.

HITS Daily Double reported on Monday (July 15) that the project is expected to earn between 270,000 and 290,000 album-equivalent units in its opening week.

This would secure Em a No. 1 debut on the Billboard 200, dethroning Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department after a dominant 12 consecutive weeks atop the chart.

It would also mark the Detroit rap legend’s 11th No. 1 album, putting him level with Kanye West, Bruce Springsteen and Barbra Streisand. Only Drake (13), Swift (14), JAY-Z (also 14) and The Beatles (19) have more.

While the 270-290K ballpark sits at the lower end of the spectrum for Eminem, whose 2000 album The Marshall Mathers LP opened with a staggering 1.78 million units, The Death of Slim Shady could still outsell more recent efforts like Revival (267,000) and Music to be Murdered By (279,000).

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the album has stirred controversy since its release last Friday. Earlier this week, Eminem received a fiery response from conservative commentator Candace Owens after dissing her on the Dr. Dre-produced “Lucifer.”

Owens responded to Eminem in a lengthy rant on her YouTube channel, accusing of him being a closeted homosexual.

“First thing I wanna say is Eminem is obviously a gay man. It’s very sad that Eminem cleaned out his closet but never came out of his closet,” she said, referencing his 2002 hit.

The Death of Slim Shady also saw Eminem take shots at Diddy over his alleged history of rape and brutal assault of Cassie; as well as Ja Rule, Lizzo and “corny white rappers.”

Source hiphopdx.com

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