Part about Royce and Em:
After a week that brought us "2.0 Boys," a look at changed relationships through honest lyrics - from Royce Da 5'9" speaking to Eminem on "Move On," to Game apologizing to Dr. Dre on "Doctor's Advocate."
"Marshall, I'm sorry I knew it went left /
I ain't into fuckin' my family, like incest /
If you remember, ice used to be my life's interest /
Tell Hailie my wife just had a princess /
Since I made up wit' Em, there's nothing' else that I can move on from /
So who wants some?" - Royce Da 5'9", Slaughterhouse's "Move On"
Few songs in the last three years have touched me as much as Slaughterhouse's "Move On." I'm way more partial to The Kickdrums' video version than what made last month's EP, but the real magic of the song is its concept. On the surface, the record appears to be driven by the questions the four talented members of the group were consistently asked by so-called "Rap journalists." And yes, I'm sure a few of the questions I've personally asked these guys over the years prompted their frustrations - but what I really love about this posse-cut-done-right is its brutal honesty. While E1 Entertainment shamefully never put the proper version on any album (did The Kinks sample hold things up?), I believe this song to be a moment in time in what's made Hip Hop really interesting this week and this year - Eminem's backing-then-signing of the group.
With the exception of Joe Budden, Slaughterhouse has always had a relationship with Eminem. He and Joell Ortiz were briefly label-mates at Aftermath in the mid '00s, a topic briefly addressed in "Move On." Eminem and Crooked I, both disciples of Sway & King Tech's Wakeup Show, were front-runners in the late '90s emcee renaissance. Additionally, this writer personally believes that part of the reason Death Row signed Crooked was to be a competitive answer to Dr. Dre's success with Em as another artist revolutionizing vocal delivery. On "Move On," Crooked I cleverly waves off the notions that Em's mentor Dr. Dre is the only one capable of "saving the West." The most colorful history in the relationship between Eminem and Slaughterhouse is Royce Da 5'9" - a longtime collaborator, friend and brief Bad Meets Evil partner with Slim Shady in the '90s.
Despite this connection to Eminem, I presumed that even in the earliest days of Slaughterhouse excitement that people like Eminem would never hear the rejoicing cries of the Internet enough to care.
I was wrong.
I think what piqued Eminem's interest most was honesty, and I think "Move On" was a confessional. Posted above, Royce's lyrics to his estranged comrade contained one of the rarest words you'll ever find in Rap verse: "I'm sorry." In his raps, Royce Da 5'9" is known as a ball of arrogance, and rightfully so. Like Ras Kass or Big L, Royce has an aesthetic that frequently speaks to peers and the streets as "don't even try." Perhaps that attitude, although typical of an emcee, let its off-the-mic tendencies led to a falling out between Em and Royce - pure speculation of course. I don't know, and maybe they don't either. I was a correspondent for AllHipHop.com at the time years later, when Royce and D12's Proof began a through-the-media attack on each other. Eminem's name was dropped frequently in my interviews with both, and if you would have asked me in 2003 if there would ever be a repaired friendship, I almost certainly would have thought it impossible. Over six years later, with a lost friend and restored talking-terms between them, Royce was still apologizing. Without asking for something, one of the cockiest emcees in Hip Hop spoke to his friend in a way that relates to the damaged partnerships in all of our lives: "I'm sorry, I never wanted to do this to us."
Maybe that was all Eminem needed to hear, or maybe it made him want to reply. Or maybe look at his life and remember a time when lyrics mattered most, and revamp his label with talent that excited the masses - indicative in this week's "2.0 Boys" . I'm just really glad it happened.
