Relapse 2
Encyclopedia
Recovery is the seventh studio album
by American rapper Eminem
, released on June 18, 2010, by Shady Records
, Aftermath Entertainment
and Interscope Records
. Production for the album took place during 2009 to 2010 at several recording studios and was handled by various record producers, including Alex da Kid
, Just Blaze
, Boi-1da
, Jim Jonsin
, DJ Khalil
, Mr. Porter
and Dr. Dre
. Originally recorded as a sequel to Eminem's previous album Relapse (2009), Recovery features more introspective and emotional content than its predecessor.
The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200
chart, selling 741,000 copies in its first week in the United States. It also charted at number one in several other countries, and produced three singles that achieved chart success, including the Billboard
hit "No Love
" and international hits "Not Afraid
" and "Love the Way You Lie
". Despite some criticism regarding its consistency, Recovery received positive reviews from most music critics, who complimented Eminem's rapping and performance on the album, and earned him a Grammy Award
for Best Rap Album
. It is the best-selling album of 2010 and has sold 5.7 million copies worldwide.
had recorded a considerable amount of music and thus, "Putting out Relapse 2 will let everyone get all of the best stuff." According to Angela Yee's Shade 45
interview with Eminem on April 23, 2009, Relapse 2 was to be a continuation of Relapse. During the interview Eminem also confirmed "It's extremely close to being finished, it just depends on how many songs I want to put on it."
He called into Shade 45 and said he was in the studio finishing up the album. Recording sessions for the album took place during 2009 to 2010 at several recording studios, including Allure Sound in Oak Park, Michigan
, 54 Sound and Effigy Studios in Ferndale, Michigan
, Black Chiney
Studios in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida
, Boi-1da Studio in Ajax, Ontario
, Canada
, Playhouse in Parkland, Florida
, Avex Honolulu Studio in Honolulu, Hawaii
, Encore Studios in Burbank, California
, Sun Studios in Temple Bar, London
, and Shake 'Em Down Studios in Queens, New York.
Eminem explained the album was more "emotionally driven" than Relapse, which was, as he explains, "[just] rap records". When premiering the debut single, Eminem also let listeners know that there were not any skits on the album (so the album would contain more songs than his previous studio albums). He described a song titled "Insult to Injury", in which Eminem performs in his normal voice, as somewhat of a sequel to "Underground," the final track from the previous album, Relapse. "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" features his rap group D12
; Bizarre
of D12 said the new song shows the group's strength despite the death of founder Proof
. "We're still family, but everybody's got their own situations going on," he added. "No matter what y'all do, you can't hold D12 down. We've been through a lot of shit, but we're still gonna come back and recover."
As for guests on the album, Eminem had said back while the album was still titled Relapse 2, he worked with both Dr. Dre
and 50 Cent
on the album. D12
, Royce da 5'9", Lloyd Banks
and Cashis
had been speculated as possible features on the album. However, none of these artists are actually featured (Recovery only featured guest appearances by rapper Lil Wayne
and solo singers Kobe, Pink
and Rihanna
). He decided to include Pink on "Won't Back Down" after recording his parts first because he "felt like she would smash this record". On the bonus track "Session One", Eminem features supergroup Slaughterhouse, signed with Shady Records.
DJ Whoo Kid
heard some songs from the album. He bombasted that "The Warning
" is a diss record to Mariah Carey
, and was not as intense as the entire album would be, saying the album is 'maniacal'. Eminem appeared on Shade 45
with DJ Whoo Kid
where he stated that a track with 50 Cent
, in which the two rap together on verses, existed. He also confirmed both Just Blaze
and Mr. Porter as producers on the album. Bizarre
of D12
stated that the group recorded a song for the album tentatively titled "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", which was later leaked onto the internet.
On April 13, 2010, Eminem tweeted
"There is no Relapse 2" to his followers. Upon this tweet, people started to believe that he was not releasing an album at all, but it meant simply that the album would be changed to Recovery. He confirmed this by tweeting "Recovery" with a link to his website. Eminem said "I had originally planned for Relapse 2 to come out last year. But as I kept recording and working with new producers, the idea of a sequel to Relapse started to make less and less sense to me, and I wanted to make a completely new album. The music on Recovery came out very different from Relapse, and I think it deserves its own title." He later released a freestyle
titled "Despicable" over "Over
" by Drake
and "Beamer, Benz, or Bentley
" by Lloyd Banks
featuring Juelz Santana
as promo for the first single, "Not Afraid
", which debuted on Shade 45
on April 29. In a recent interview, Eminem said "I must have gone through 200–300 beats, for the album and chose 100 of them and recorded it."
reporting a November 2009 release date, but in November 2009, he stated that he would re-release Relapse, with extra songs, to hold fans over for the release of Relapse 2 in 2010. It was voted the most anticipated album of fall 2009 by XXL
, It was slated to be the second Eminem album released in 2009, after Relapse, but was pushed back to 2010. Recovery was released on June 21 in the United States and the United Kingdom, and on June 18 in the rest of Europe.
Eminem has done multiple interviews such as with Red Bull
in promotion of the album. A commercial for Recovery premiered during Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals
. It featured Vince Offer
from the Slap Chop commercials in a parody of his commercials. Also, a Call of Duty: Black Ops
ad with "Won't Back Down" was released; the song appeared in the game as an easter egg
as well. On June 15, Eminem appeared among other artists including Usher
and Will.i.am
for Activision
's press conference during the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010
with Rihanna where the duo performed "Love the Way You Lie
". In addition, Eminem performed "Lose Yourself
", "Not Afraid", and premiered "Won't Back Down" for the first time. Eminem appeared on E!
during their Daily 10 show in an interview. He also appeared in a skit on The Soup
. Eminem also performed at the 2010 BET Awards
.
in the background. The albums liner features pictures of Eminem such as a picture of him "praying
" and him posing without a shirt on. The album is dedicated "2 anyone who's in a dark place tryin' to 2 get out. Keep your head up... It does get better!"
" was released on Shade 45 and has received free streaming on Eminem's website since then. The song sold 380,000 digital downloads in its first week, and became the sixteenth song in the history of the Billboard Hot 100
to debut at number one. "Not Afraid" is only the second hip hop single to debut at No. 1 following "I'll Be Missing You
" by Puff Daddy
and Faith Evans
featuring 112
. This song received very positive reviews with special attention to the emotional expression, Eminem's rhyming skills and his reaching out to other producers (his music is typically produced by mentor Dr. Dre
or Eminem himself). Rolling Stone
praised Eminem's commitment on his new music and lyrical ability noting "Over a dark, operatic beat, Eminem delivers rhymes that are typically acrobatic – and typically heavy-handed. But the anger has a gathering quality." The official music video was directed by American music video and commercial director Rich Lee
. The video premiered on June 5, 2011 on music video website Vevo
. The music video, shot in Newark, New Jersey
, won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Male Video
at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards
.
The second single was released on August 9, 2010 titled "Love the Way You Lie
", which features Rihanna
. The song was highly successful like its predecessor and debuted at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. It has since reached number 1. The song gave Eminem
his fourth US Hot 100 number-one hit and Rihanna her seventh. It also claimed the top spot on over twenty other charts worldwide. "Love the Way You Lie" has since been number one on the US Billboard Hot 100
for seven consecutive weeks. The song has received a very positive reception from critics. Michael Menachem from Billboard
gave a positive review of the song saying, "Rihanna's chorus is exquisitely melodic and surprisingly hopeful, complementing the turmoil of Em's dark, introspective rant. Producer Alex da Kid has a knack for mainstreaming classical instrumentation, and here he cements the story with a slick, midtempo percussive punch that showcases both performers on equal planes." BBC Radio 1
gave the song four out of five stars stating, "This is not an autobiographical lyric [...] It's one of Eminem's flights of fancy, albeit one into a very real situation. Clearly he understands the psychology well, and can express the feelings with enormous clarity. Rihanna's role in all of this is interesting though." The Joseph Kahn
directed music video premiered on August 5, 2010. It stars Dominic Monaghan
and Megan Fox
in a love-hate relationship
. It is currently one of the most viewed music videos on Vevo.
"No Love
", which features American rapper Lil Wayne
, was the third single, released on October 5, 2010. The music video, directed by Chris Robinson
, premiered September 30 on Vevo and various MTV
networks. It is about a young school boy who is bullied but has the urge to stand up after being motivated by listening to Eminem and Lil Wayne songs. The video gained positive attention for its bullying theme. Eminem and Lil Wayne performed "No Love" on Saturday Night Live
on December 18. "No Love" was met with very positive reception for sampling "What Is Love" by Haddaway
, which was done by hip hop
producer Just Blaze
. The song did not perform as well as the two previous singles, only peaking at 23 on the Billboard Hot 100
and stayed on the charts for twenty weeks (which was longer than "Not Afraid" however).
"Space Bound
" was announced to be released as the fourth single. English songwriter Steve McEwan
provides additional vocals in the chorus
. The music video was shot in February 2011 by "Love the Way You Lie" director Joseph Kahn. The uncensored music video was released on June 24, 2011 at 5 PM EST on iTunes
only. The video then premiered on Vevo
Monday, June 27 at 3 AM EST. The plot stars actress Sasha Grey
and Eminem in a relationship, which ends violently. The video caused controversy for a bloody scene in which Eminem shoots himself. The video was slammed by British anti-violence
campaigners. Anti-violence group, Mothers Against Violence, told the Daily Mirror, "It's all about the money with these videos. Eminem isn't thinking about the families affected." The "Space Bound" music video, having gained attention for a confusing theme, was analyzed by Sasha Grey and the song's producer, Jim Jonsin
. They both agreed that the video has no certain message, but can be interpreted "in many ways".
Songs "25 to Life", "Won't Back Down
", "Cinderella Man", "Talkin' 2 Myself", and "Cold Wind Blows" also debuted on the Hot 100 without release as singles.
chart, with first-week sales of 741,000 copies in the United States. It became Eminem's sixth album to debut at number one in the United States. In its second week of release it remained at number-one and sold 313,000 copies. It also entered at number one on Billboard
s R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Rap Albums
chart. In its ninth week of release the album remained at number one for its seventh non-consecutive week and sold 116,000 copies. In its first nine weeks of release the album sold over 100,000 copies every week. As of March 2011, the album is No. 1 on the all-time list of albums with the most digital sales, with over 922,000 copies digitally sold As of July 2011, the album broke the digital record and became the first album to sell 1 million digital copies. It held the record for most digital albums sold, but was later outsold by Adele
's 21
album. As of September 25, 2011, the album has sold 4,040,000 copies in the United States. Since it's United States release, the album has spent a total of 27 weeks in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 which is more than any other hip-hop album since 2003. It spent 7 weeks at number one in both the US & UK amongst over nations.
The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart
, selling 140,000 copies in its first week in the United Kingdom. In Canada, the album sold 85,000 copies in its first week and debuted at number one on Canada's Albums Chart
. The album spent six consecutive weeks at number one, and retook the top spot after one week at number 2. As of August 18, 2010, the album has sold 277,000 copies in Canada. In Japan, Oricon
recorded a debut of number six with 20,678 units sold. It also went gold in its first week in New Zealand and Australia, debuting at number one in both countries. The album has since sold over 210,000 copies in Australia, certifying it triple platinum there.
By the end of its release year, and only six months after release, Recovery had sold over 5,700,000 albums worldwide. It was the best-selling album of 2010 in the United States with 3.4 million copies, and it sold 2.3 million copies in other territories for a total of 5.7 million copies worldwide. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, it was also the best-selling album of 2010 worldwide. The album was the best-selling album in Canada in 2010 selling 435,000 copies; more than double the album in 2nd place. Recovery was the third best-selling album of 2010 in Australia. As of September 25, 2011, the album had sold 4,040,000 copies in the United States.
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 63, based on 28 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Despite viewing its structure as inconsistent, Allmusic writer David Jeffries gave it 3½ out of 5 stars and praised Eminem's performance as potent and energetic, writing "It may be flawed and the rapper’s attitude is sometimes one step ahead of his output, but he hasn’t sounded this unfiltered and proud since The Marshall Mathers LP
". Entertainment Weekly
s Simon Vozick-Levinson noted "gratuitous nastiness" as a weakness, but stated "Eminem's lyrical craftsmanship is second to none [...] and there are flashes of new maturity". Benjamin Meadows-Ingrim of Spin
viewed that its introspective content "plays to his strengths". Rolling Stone
writer Jody Rosen
called it Eminem's "most casual-sounding album in years". USA Today
s Steve Jones called it "a strong return to the form" for Eminem and complimented his transition in "tone and attitude" from his previous work, stating "He aims for substance over shock value, vividly spilling out details of his various tribulations". Sam Wolfson of NME
gave it a 7/10 rating and called Eminem "self aware, technically advanced, intelligent, able to go at speeds other than full throttle".
However, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times
regarded Eminem as "frustratingly limited in his topical range" and called Recovery "the most insular of all his releases". Andy Gill of The Independent
gave it 3 out of 5 stars and stated "there's nothing here quite as witty or engaging as" on his previous work. Pitchfork Media
's Jayson Greene perceived a lack of lyrical depth and wrote "for the first time in his career, he actually sounds clumsy". Chicago Tribune
writer Greg Kot
wrote that it "is brutally short on hooks and, most of all, fun. The subversive humor is long gone, and his cultural references... remain dated". Slant Magazine
's M.T. Richards called the album's material "unsurprisingly hollow" and panned Eminem's lyrics, stating "his punchlines rarely resonate; his nasal bark of a delivery grows tiring fast; and his pop culture references... are inane". Mike Schiller of PopMatters
commended Eminem's "sense of self-awareness", but noted "his hateful asides and misogynist tendencies" and inconsistent shifts in subject matter as the album's flaws. The Observer
s Kitty Empire
described it as "a long march through Mathers's contradictions, punctuated with splatter-flick levels of lyrical gore". Sean O'Neal of The A.V. Club
gave it a B rating and commented "while the endless atonement metaphors threaten to make Recovery a maudlin affair, at moments like these, Eminem soars over his lowered expectations".
Despite praising Eminem's lyricism, The Guardian
s Paul MacInnes viewed its production as a weakness and wrote "a piecemeal approach to production (Dr. Dre has just one credit) leaves the album lacking an abiding mood and drowning in fashionable soft-rock samples". Los Angeles Times
writer Jeff Weiss complimented Eminem's "dazzling internal patterns and clever word play", but panned its production and called it "monochromatic and monotonous". Sean Fennessey of The Washington Post
viewed that its songs are "weighed down by some brutal samples" and called it "a morose picture of an artist grappling, and often losing his grip". Giving it a 7/10 rating, RapReviews writer Jesal Padania noted various inconsistencies and found the album "enjoyable", while writing "One individual might completely love it, another hate it – for pretty much the same reasons... not his best, nor his worst, but either people will listen incessantly or barely at all. There is no middle ground". In his consumder guide for MSN Music
, critic Robert Christgau
gave Recovery an A- rating and complimented Eminem's "long-recessive sense of play", while commenting that "The comeback is for Eminem, not Slim Shady‑-and for Marshall at his most martial. His most confessional as well".
placed the album at number 38 on its 40 Best Albums list for 2010. Rolling Stone placed Recovery and its single "Not Afraid" on their lists of Best Albums of 2010 and Best Singles of 2010 at number 9 and number 24 respectively. It earned Eminem ten Grammy Award
nominations at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Rap Album, winning the latter. As of April 2011, the album has been nominated for Top Billboard 200 Album and Top Rap Album for the 2011 Billboard Music Awards
(add.) Additional production
Sample credits
Information taken from Recovery liner notes:
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American rapper Eminem
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
, released on June 18, 2010, by Shady Records
Shady Records
Shady Records is an American record label specializing in hip hop music. Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg founded the label in 1999 after the release of The Slim Shady LP.Since the formation, the label has signed nine acts...
, Aftermath Entertainment
Aftermath Entertainment
Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by Dr. Dre. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through, Universal Music Group's Interscope Records. Current acts include Dr. Dre, Eminem, 50 Cent and Slim da Mobster, with former acts including Busta Rhymes, Game, Raekwon,...
and Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
. Production for the album took place during 2009 to 2010 at several recording studios and was handled by various record producers, including Alex da Kid
Alex da Kid
Alexander Grant , better known as Alex da Kid, is a Grammy award winning English music songwriter and hip-hop producer.-Early life:...
, Just Blaze
Just Blaze
Justin Smith, better known as Just Blaze, is an American hip hop music producer from Paterson, New Jersey. Blaze is also the CEO of Fort Knocks Entertainment. He is most well known for producing Jay-Z songs on the albums The Blueprint, The Blueprint 2, and The Black Album. He is also known for...
, Boi-1da
Boi-1da
Matthew Samuels , better known as Boi-1da , is a Canadian hip-hop producer from Toronto, Ontario. He has produced for artists and groups such as Chip tha Ripper, Kardinal Offishall, Clipse, Drake, Eminem, Saukrates, k-os, G-Unit, and The Diplomats among others...
, Jim Jonsin
Jim Jonsin
James Scheffer, better known by his professional name, Jim Jonsin, is an American Grammy award winning record producer, songwriter, record executive, and entrepreneur...
, DJ Khalil
DJ Khalil
Khalil Abdul-Rahman, better known by his stage name DJ Khalil, is a Los Angeles based American hip hop/soul record producer, and is the instrumental half of the hip hop duo Self Scientific, together with rapper Chace Infinite...
, Mr. Porter
Kon Artis
Denaun Porter , known by his stage name Kon Artis or his alter ego Mr. Porter, is an American rapper and record producer, who is best known for being an original member of the Detroit rap group D12, as well as the co-founder of Runyon Ave. record label...
and Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
. Originally recorded as a sequel to Eminem's previous album Relapse (2009), Recovery features more introspective and emotional content than its predecessor.
The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, selling 741,000 copies in its first week in the United States. It also charted at number one in several other countries, and produced three singles that achieved chart success, including the Billboard
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
hit "No Love
No Love
"No Love" is a song by American rapper Eminem, and was released as the third official single off of his seventh studio album, Recovery . The song features American rapper Lil Wayne. It impacted radio on October 5, 2010. "No Love" was produced by American hip hop record producer Just...
" and international hits "Not Afraid
Not Afraid
Not to be confused with Eminem's Not AfraidNot Afraid is the debut studio album by Christian pop rock singer Stephanie Smith. It was released on May 27, 2008 through Gotee Records...
" and "Love the Way You Lie
Love the Way You Lie
"Love the Way You Lie" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his seventh studio album, Recovery . It was released as the album's second single on August 9, 2010, by Interscope-Geffen-A&M. The song features vocals by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna. According to her, its theme...
". Despite some criticism regarding its consistency, Recovery received positive reviews from most music critics, who complimented Eminem's rapping and performance on the album, and earned him a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for Best Rap Album
Grammy Award for Best Rap Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums with rapping at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards...
. It is the best-selling album of 2010 and has sold 5.7 million copies worldwide.
Production and composition
In a press release, Eminem explained that he and Dr. DreDr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
had recorded a considerable amount of music and thus, "Putting out Relapse 2 will let everyone get all of the best stuff." According to Angela Yee's Shade 45
Shade 45
Shade 45 is Eminem's uncensored Hip-Hop/Rap-heavy urban contemporary channel. Eminem Brings On-Air show hosts. It debuted with a hip hop format in 2004, changing to its current incarnation when it was added to XM channel 66...
interview with Eminem on April 23, 2009, Relapse 2 was to be a continuation of Relapse. During the interview Eminem also confirmed "It's extremely close to being finished, it just depends on how many songs I want to put on it."
He called into Shade 45 and said he was in the studio finishing up the album. Recording sessions for the album took place during 2009 to 2010 at several recording studios, including Allure Sound in Oak Park, Michigan
Oak Park, Michigan
As of the census of 2000, there were 29,793 people, 11,104 households, and 7,595 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,863.8 persons per square mile . There were 11,370 housing units at an average density of 2,263.9 per square mile...
, 54 Sound and Effigy Studios in Ferndale, Michigan
Ferndale, Michigan
Ferndale is adjacent to the cities of Detroit to the south, Oak Park to the west, Hazel Park to the east, Pleasant Ridge to the north, Royal Oak Township to the southwest, and Royal Oak to the north....
, Black Chiney
Black Chiney
Black Chiney is a Jamaican sound system based in Miami, Florida. It consists of four Chinese Jamaicans mixed with African descent: Supa Dups, Bobby Chin, Willy Chin and Walshy Killa. The Caribbean slang "Black Chiney" refers to this racial mix....
Studios in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida
Lauderdale Lakes, Florida
Lauderdale Lakes is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 32,593. It is part of the Miami–Fort Lauderdale–Pompano Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is home to 5,564,635 people....
, Boi-1da Studio in Ajax, Ontario
Ajax, Ontario
Ajax is a town in the Durham Region in the Greater Toronto Area.The town is named for the HMS Ajax a Royal Navy cruiser that served in World War II. Ajax is a part of the Greater Toronto Area and the...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Playhouse in Parkland, Florida
Parkland, Florida
Parkland is an city in Broward County, Florida, where zoning laws are designed to protect the "parklike" character of the city. Initially, there were no stores or traffic lights in Parkland, though this changed in the early 2000s. As of the 2010 census, the population of Parkland was 23,962...
, Avex Honolulu Studio in Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...
, Encore Studios in Burbank, California
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
, Sun Studios in Temple Bar, London
Temple Bar, London
Temple Bar is the barrier marking the westernmost extent of the City of London on the road to Westminster, where Fleet Street becomes the Strand...
, and Shake 'Em Down Studios in Queens, New York.
Eminem explained the album was more "emotionally driven" than Relapse, which was, as he explains, "[just] rap records". When premiering the debut single, Eminem also let listeners know that there were not any skits on the album (so the album would contain more songs than his previous studio albums). He described a song titled "Insult to Injury", in which Eminem performs in his normal voice, as somewhat of a sequel to "Underground," the final track from the previous album, Relapse. "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" features his rap group D12
D12
D12, an acronym for The Dirty Dozen, is an American hip hop group from Detroit, Michigan. D12 has had chart-topping albums in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia...
; Bizarre
Bizarre (rapper)
Rufus Arthur Johnson , better known as Bizarre is an American recording artist best known for his work with Detroit hip-hop group D12. His songs are often about subjects which create shock value such as rape and drugs.-Early life:Bizarre was born as Rufus Arthur Johnson on July 5, 1976 in Detroit,...
of D12 said the new song shows the group's strength despite the death of founder Proof
Proof (rapper)
DeShaun Dupree Holton better known as Proof his stage name, was an American rapper from Detroit, Michigan. During his career, he was a member of the groups Goon Squad, 5 Elementz, Promatic, and most notably D12...
. "We're still family, but everybody's got their own situations going on," he added. "No matter what y'all do, you can't hold D12 down. We've been through a lot of shit, but we're still gonna come back and recover."
As for guests on the album, Eminem had said back while the album was still titled Relapse 2, he worked with both Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
and 50 Cent
50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...
on the album. D12
D12
D12, an acronym for The Dirty Dozen, is an American hip hop group from Detroit, Michigan. D12 has had chart-topping albums in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia...
, Royce da 5'9", Lloyd Banks
Lloyd Banks
Christopher Charles Lloyd , better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper and member of the rap group G-Unit. Raised in South Jamaica, Queens, he dropped out of high school in 1998. G-Unit released two albums, Beg for Mercy in 2003 and T.O.S. in 2008...
and Cashis
Cashis
Ramone Johnson, better known by his stage name Cashis , is an American rapper who was born and raised in Chicago, but moved to Irvine, California. He was featured on the Shady album Eminem Presents: The Re-Up and released the County Hound EP in 2007...
had been speculated as possible features on the album. However, none of these artists are actually featured (Recovery only featured guest appearances by rapper Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
and solo singers Kobe, Pink
Pink (singer)
Alecia Beth Moore , better known by her stage name Pink , is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actress....
and Rihanna
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty , better known as simply Rihanna, is a Barbadian recording artist. Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a recording career under the guidance of record producer Evan Rogers...
). He decided to include Pink on "Won't Back Down" after recording his parts first because he "felt like she would smash this record". On the bonus track "Session One", Eminem features supergroup Slaughterhouse, signed with Shady Records.
DJ Whoo Kid
DJ Whoo Kid
DJ Whoo Kid is a hip hop DJ and of Haitian descent raised in Queens Village, New York but with strong roots to Cap-Haïtien, Haiti. He is currently signed to G-Unit Records and its subsidiary label, Shady Ville Entertainment...
heard some songs from the album. He bombasted that "The Warning
The Warning (Eminem song)
"The Warning" is a controversial hip-hop diss song written by Eminem as part of an ongoing conflict with Mariah Carey over claims that she once had a relationship with him...
" is a diss record to Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...
, and was not as intense as the entire album would be, saying the album is 'maniacal'. Eminem appeared on Shade 45
Shade 45
Shade 45 is Eminem's uncensored Hip-Hop/Rap-heavy urban contemporary channel. Eminem Brings On-Air show hosts. It debuted with a hip hop format in 2004, changing to its current incarnation when it was added to XM channel 66...
with DJ Whoo Kid
DJ Whoo Kid
DJ Whoo Kid is a hip hop DJ and of Haitian descent raised in Queens Village, New York but with strong roots to Cap-Haïtien, Haiti. He is currently signed to G-Unit Records and its subsidiary label, Shady Ville Entertainment...
where he stated that a track with 50 Cent
50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...
, in which the two rap together on verses, existed. He also confirmed both Just Blaze
Just Blaze
Justin Smith, better known as Just Blaze, is an American hip hop music producer from Paterson, New Jersey. Blaze is also the CEO of Fort Knocks Entertainment. He is most well known for producing Jay-Z songs on the albums The Blueprint, The Blueprint 2, and The Black Album. He is also known for...
and Mr. Porter as producers on the album. Bizarre
Bizarre (rapper)
Rufus Arthur Johnson , better known as Bizarre is an American recording artist best known for his work with Detroit hip-hop group D12. His songs are often about subjects which create shock value such as rape and drugs.-Early life:Bizarre was born as Rufus Arthur Johnson on July 5, 1976 in Detroit,...
of D12
D12
D12, an acronym for The Dirty Dozen, is an American hip hop group from Detroit, Michigan. D12 has had chart-topping albums in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia...
stated that the group recorded a song for the album tentatively titled "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", which was later leaked onto the internet.
On April 13, 2010, Eminem tweeted
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
"There is no Relapse 2" to his followers. Upon this tweet, people started to believe that he was not releasing an album at all, but it meant simply that the album would be changed to Recovery. He confirmed this by tweeting "Recovery" with a link to his website. Eminem said "I had originally planned for Relapse 2 to come out last year. But as I kept recording and working with new producers, the idea of a sequel to Relapse started to make less and less sense to me, and I wanted to make a completely new album. The music on Recovery came out very different from Relapse, and I think it deserves its own title." He later released a freestyle
Freestyle rap
Freestyle rap commonly refers to rap lyrics which are improvised through a acapella or with instrumental beats, i.e. performed with no previously composed lyrics, or "off the top of the head"...
titled "Despicable" over "Over
Over (Drake song)
"Over" is a song by Canadian recording artist, Drake. The song serves as the lead single from his debut album, Thank Me Later. It was written by Drake with Boi-1da, and produced by the latter and Al Khaaliq. The single was released for digital download on March 8, 2010. The song is midtempo hip-hop...
" by Drake
Drake (entertainer)
Aubrey Drake Graham , who records under the mononym Drake, is a Canadian recording artist and actor. He originally became known for playing Jimmy Brooks on the television series Degrassi: The Next Generation....
and "Beamer, Benz, or Bentley
Beamer, Benz, or Bentley
"Beamer, Benz, or Bentley" is the first official single from Lloyd Banks' third album H.F.M. 2 , which was released on November 23, 2010. The song was released as a digital download on February 9, 2010...
" by Lloyd Banks
Lloyd Banks
Christopher Charles Lloyd , better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper and member of the rap group G-Unit. Raised in South Jamaica, Queens, he dropped out of high school in 1998. G-Unit released two albums, Beg for Mercy in 2003 and T.O.S. in 2008...
featuring Juelz Santana
Juelz Santana
LaRon Louis James , better known by his stage name Juelz Santana, is an American rapper, producer, and actor. He appeared on Cam'ron's 2002 singles, "Oh Boy" and "Hey Ma"...
as promo for the first single, "Not Afraid
Not Afraid
Not to be confused with Eminem's Not AfraidNot Afraid is the debut studio album by Christian pop rock singer Stephanie Smith. It was released on May 27, 2008 through Gotee Records...
", which debuted on Shade 45
Shade 45
Shade 45 is Eminem's uncensored Hip-Hop/Rap-heavy urban contemporary channel. Eminem Brings On-Air show hosts. It debuted with a hip hop format in 2004, changing to its current incarnation when it was added to XM channel 66...
on April 29. In a recent interview, Eminem said "I must have gone through 200–300 beats, for the album and chose 100 of them and recorded it."
Release and promotion
His seventh studio album, Recovery was confirmed during a press release by Eminem's label on March 5, 2009 and was originally titled Relapse 2. In June 2009, Eminem said that he expected a release during the fourth quarter of 2009, with Rolling StoneRolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
reporting a November 2009 release date, but in November 2009, he stated that he would re-release Relapse, with extra songs, to hold fans over for the release of Relapse 2 in 2010. It was voted the most anticipated album of fall 2009 by XXL
XXL (magazine)
XXL is a Hip-Hop magazine, published by Harris Publications.In 1997, XXL was founded by former Source staffers as well as other Harris Publication employees, who wanted to create their own magazine about the hip-hop music and culture using the model developed by the founders of The Source...
, It was slated to be the second Eminem album released in 2009, after Relapse, but was pushed back to 2010. Recovery was released on June 21 in the United States and the United Kingdom, and on June 18 in the rest of Europe.
Eminem has done multiple interviews such as with Red Bull
Red Bull
Red Bull is an energy drink sold by the Austrian Red Bull GmbH, created in 1987 by the Austrian entrepreneur Dietrich Mateschitz. In terms of market share, Red Bull is the most popular energy drink in the world, with 3 billion cans sold each year. Dietrich Mateschitz was inspired by an already...
in promotion of the album. A commercial for Recovery premiered during Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals
2010 NBA Finals
The 2010 NBA Finals was the National Basketball Association championship series for the 2009–10 season. The best-of-seven playoff was contested between the Los Angeles Lakers, champions of the Western Conference and defending NBA champions, and the Boston Celtics, champions of the Eastern Conference...
. It featured Vince Offer
Vince Offer
Offer "Vince" Shlomi , known as Vince Offer, the ShamWow! Guy, or Headset Vince, is an infomercial pitchman, writer, director, and comedian . Offer's first major work was the 1999 comedy film The Underground Comedy Movie, which was met with negative reception...
from the Slap Chop commercials in a parody of his commercials. Also, a Call of Duty: Black Ops
Call of Duty: Black Ops
Call of Duty: Black Ops is a first-person shooter video game developed by Treyarch, published by Activision and released worldwide on November 9, for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii consoles, with a separate version for Nintendo DS developed by n-Space. Announced on April 30, 2010,...
ad with "Won't Back Down" was released; the song appeared in the game as an easter egg
Easter egg
Easter eggs are special eggs that are often given to celebrate Easter or springtime.The oldest tradition is to use dyed or painted chicken eggs, but a modern custom is to substitute chocolate eggs, or plastic eggs filled with confectionery such as jelly beans...
as well. On June 15, Eminem appeared among other artists including Usher
Usher (entertainer)
Usher Terry Raymond IV , who performs under the mononym Usher, is an American singer-songwriter, and actor. He is considered around the world to be the reigning King of R&B. Usher rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his second album My Way, which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100...
and Will.i.am
Will.i.am
William James Adams, Jr. , better known by his stage name will.i.am and occasionally by his other stage name Zuper Blahq, is an American rapper, musician, songwriter, singer, actor and producer...
for Activision
Activision
Activision is an American publisher, majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA. Its current CEO is Robert Kotick. It was founded on October 1, 1979 and was the world's first independent developer and distributor of video games for gaming consoles...
's press conference during the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010
Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010
The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010, commonly known as E3 2010, was the 16th Electronic Entertainment Expo held. The event took place on June 14–17 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. E3 is an annual trade show for the computer and video games industry presented by the Entertainment Software...
with Rihanna where the duo performed "Love the Way You Lie
Love the Way You Lie
"Love the Way You Lie" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his seventh studio album, Recovery . It was released as the album's second single on August 9, 2010, by Interscope-Geffen-A&M. The song features vocals by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna. According to her, its theme...
". In addition, Eminem performed "Lose Yourself
Lose Yourself
"Lose Yourself" is an Academy Award winning song by American hip-hop artist Eminem, released as the first single from the original soundtrack to the movie 8 Mile on October 22, 2002. It was written and produced by Eminem himself, along with longtime collaborator Jeff Bass, one half of the...
", "Not Afraid", and premiered "Won't Back Down" for the first time. Eminem appeared on E!
E!
E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by NBCUniversal. It features entertainment-related programming, reality television, feature films and occasionally series and specials unrelated to the entertainment industry.E! has an audience reach of...
during their Daily 10 show in an interview. He also appeared in a skit on The Soup
The Soup
The Soup is an E! Entertainment Television weekly series; it is a revamped version of Talk Soup that focuses on recaps of various pop culture and television show moments of the week...
. Eminem also performed at the 2010 BET Awards
BET Awards
The BET Awards were established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network to celebrate African Americans and other minorities in music, acting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year. The awards are presented annually and broadcast live on BET...
.
Artwork
The album artwork was released through Eminem.com. The album features two covers: One with Eminem walking down a country road and another with him sitting in a transparent living room in the middle of Detroit with the Renaissance CenterRenaissance Center
Renaissance Center is a group of seven interconnected skyscrapers in Downtown Detroit, Michigan, United States. Located on the International Riverfront, the Renaissance Center complex is owned by General Motors as its world headquarters...
in the background. The albums liner features pictures of Eminem such as a picture of him "praying
Prayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
" and him posing without a shirt on. The album is dedicated "2 anyone who's in a dark place tryin' to 2 get out. Keep your head up... It does get better!"
Singles
"Not AfraidNot Afraid
Not to be confused with Eminem's Not AfraidNot Afraid is the debut studio album by Christian pop rock singer Stephanie Smith. It was released on May 27, 2008 through Gotee Records...
" was released on Shade 45 and has received free streaming on Eminem's website since then. The song sold 380,000 digital downloads in its first week, and became the sixteenth song in the history of the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
to debut at number one. "Not Afraid" is only the second hip hop single to debut at No. 1 following "I'll Be Missing You
I'll Be Missing You
"I'll Be Missing You" is a Grammy Award-winning song and hit single recorded by Puff Daddy, Faith Evans and 112, in memory of fellow Bad Boy Records artist Christopher "Notorious B.I.G" Wallace who was murdered on March 9, 1997...
" by Puff Daddy
Sean Combs
Sean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...
and Faith Evans
Faith Evans
Faith Renée Evans is an American singer-songwriter, recording artist, record producer, actress and author. Born in Florida and raised in New Jersey, Evans relocated to Los Angeles during 1993 for a career with the music business. After working as a backing vocalist for Al B...
featuring 112
112 (band)
112 is an American R&B quartet from Atlanta, Georgia. Formerly artists on Diddy's Bad Boy Records, the group signed to the Def Soul roster in 2002. They had great success in the late 1990s and early 2000s with hits such as "Only You", "Anywhere" and "Peaches & Cream"...
. This song received very positive reviews with special attention to the emotional expression, Eminem's rhyming skills and his reaching out to other producers (his music is typically produced by mentor Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
or Eminem himself). Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
praised Eminem's commitment on his new music and lyrical ability noting "Over a dark, operatic beat, Eminem delivers rhymes that are typically acrobatic – and typically heavy-handed. But the anger has a gathering quality." The official music video was directed by American music video and commercial director Rich Lee
Rich lee
Rich Lee is an American music video and commercial director signed to DNA in Hollywood, California and Flynn Productions in the United Kingdom. He has directed music videos for Eminem, The Black Eyed Peas, Norah Jones, Michael Bublé and The All-American Rejects. Rich Lee started his professional...
. The video premiered on June 5, 2011 on music video website Vevo
Vevo
Vevo is a music video website. It is a joint venture among Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Abu Dhabi Media with EMI licensing its content to the group without taking an ownership stake. The service was launched officially on December 8, 2009...
. The music video, shot in Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
, won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Male Video
MTV Video Music Award for Best Male Video
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Male Video is one of the four original general awards that have been handed out every year since the very first MTV Video Music Awards in 1984. In 2007, though, the award was briefly renamed Male Artist of the Year, and it awarded the artist's whole body of work...
at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards
2010 MTV Video Music Awards
The 2010 MTV Video Music Awards took place on September 12, 2010 at Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, honoring the best music videos from the previous year...
.
The second single was released on August 9, 2010 titled "Love the Way You Lie
Love the Way You Lie
"Love the Way You Lie" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his seventh studio album, Recovery . It was released as the album's second single on August 9, 2010, by Interscope-Geffen-A&M. The song features vocals by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna. According to her, its theme...
", which features Rihanna
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty , better known as simply Rihanna, is a Barbadian recording artist. Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a recording career under the guidance of record producer Evan Rogers...
. The song was highly successful like its predecessor and debuted at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. It has since reached number 1. The song gave Eminem
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
his fourth US Hot 100 number-one hit and Rihanna her seventh. It also claimed the top spot on over twenty other charts worldwide. "Love the Way You Lie" has since been number one on the US Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
for seven consecutive weeks. The song has received a very positive reception from critics. Michael Menachem from Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
gave a positive review of the song saying, "Rihanna's chorus is exquisitely melodic and surprisingly hopeful, complementing the turmoil of Em's dark, introspective rant. Producer Alex da Kid has a knack for mainstreaming classical instrumentation, and here he cements the story with a slick, midtempo percussive punch that showcases both performers on equal planes." BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
gave the song four out of five stars stating, "This is not an autobiographical lyric [...] It's one of Eminem's flights of fancy, albeit one into a very real situation. Clearly he understands the psychology well, and can express the feelings with enormous clarity. Rihanna's role in all of this is interesting though." The Joseph Kahn
Joseph Kahn
Joseph Kahn is an American music video, advertising, and feature film director.-Early life:Kahn was born in Jersey Village, Texas, a suburb of Houston. He is of Korean ancestry. He spent part of his childhood growing up in Livorno, Italy until his family moved to Texas...
directed music video premiered on August 5, 2010. It stars Dominic Monaghan
Dominic Monaghan
Dominic Bernard Patrick Luke Monaghan is an English actor. He has received international attention from playing Merry in Peter Jackson's adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and for his role as Charlie Pace on the television show Lost....
and Megan Fox
Megan Fox
Megan Denise Fox is an American actress and model. She began her acting career in 2001 with several minor television and film roles, and played a regular role on Hope & Faith. In 2004, she launched her film career with a role in Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen...
in a love-hate relationship
Love-hate relationship
A love–hate relationship is an interpersonal relationship involving simultaneous or alternating emotions of love and hate. This relationship does not have to be of a romantic nature, and may be instead of a sibling one...
. It is currently one of the most viewed music videos on Vevo.
"No Love
No Love
"No Love" is a song by American rapper Eminem, and was released as the third official single off of his seventh studio album, Recovery . The song features American rapper Lil Wayne. It impacted radio on October 5, 2010. "No Love" was produced by American hip hop record producer Just...
", which features American rapper Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
, was the third single, released on October 5, 2010. The music video, directed by Chris Robinson
Chris Robinson (director)
Chris Robinson is an American film director working mostly with music videos and commercials. He has directed commercials for brands such as iPod, Coca Cola and Verizon and music videos for songs like "Fallin'" and "You Don't Know My Name" by Alicia Keys, "Roc Boys" by Jay-Z, the grammy nominated...
, premiered September 30 on Vevo and various MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
networks. It is about a young school boy who is bullied but has the urge to stand up after being motivated by listening to Eminem and Lil Wayne songs. The video gained positive attention for its bullying theme. Eminem and Lil Wayne performed "No Love" on Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
on December 18. "No Love" was met with very positive reception for sampling "What Is Love" by Haddaway
Haddaway
Nestor Alexander Haddaway , better known by his stage name Haddaway, is a Trinidadian-German singer. He is most famous for his worldwide 1993 hit, "What Is Love".- Early life :...
, which was done by hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
producer Just Blaze
Just Blaze
Justin Smith, better known as Just Blaze, is an American hip hop music producer from Paterson, New Jersey. Blaze is also the CEO of Fort Knocks Entertainment. He is most well known for producing Jay-Z songs on the albums The Blueprint, The Blueprint 2, and The Black Album. He is also known for...
. The song did not perform as well as the two previous singles, only peaking at 23 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and stayed on the charts for twenty weeks (which was longer than "Not Afraid" however).
"Space Bound
Space Bound
"Space Bound" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his seventh studio album, Recovery. In February 2011, "Space Bound" was announced to be released as the fourth single from Recovery. The song is produced by American hip-hop producer Jim Jonsin. "Space Bound" features interpolations of "Drive"...
" was announced to be released as the fourth single. English songwriter Steve McEwan
Steve McEwan
Steve McEwan is a British-born hit songwriter, artist, and musician. His songs have been recorded by country music artists including Kenny Chesney, Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill and Keith Urban...
provides additional vocals in the chorus
Refrain
A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...
. The music video was shot in February 2011 by "Love the Way You Lie" director Joseph Kahn. The uncensored music video was released on June 24, 2011 at 5 PM EST on iTunes
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
only. The video then premiered on Vevo
Vevo
Vevo is a music video website. It is a joint venture among Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Abu Dhabi Media with EMI licensing its content to the group without taking an ownership stake. The service was launched officially on December 8, 2009...
Monday, June 27 at 3 AM EST. The plot stars actress Sasha Grey
Sasha Grey
Sasha Grey is an American former pornographic actress, who has since turned to mainstream acting, modeling and music....
and Eminem in a relationship, which ends violently. The video caused controversy for a bloody scene in which Eminem shoots himself. The video was slammed by British anti-violence
Nonviolence
Nonviolence has two meanings. It can refer, first, to a general philosophy of abstention from violence because of moral or religious principle It can refer to the behaviour of people using nonviolent action Nonviolence has two (closely related) meanings. (1) It can refer, first, to a general...
campaigners. Anti-violence group, Mothers Against Violence, told the Daily Mirror, "It's all about the money with these videos. Eminem isn't thinking about the families affected." The "Space Bound" music video, having gained attention for a confusing theme, was analyzed by Sasha Grey and the song's producer, Jim Jonsin
Jim Jonsin
James Scheffer, better known by his professional name, Jim Jonsin, is an American Grammy award winning record producer, songwriter, record executive, and entrepreneur...
. They both agreed that the video has no certain message, but can be interpreted "in many ways".
Songs "25 to Life", "Won't Back Down
Won't Back Down (Eminem song)
"Won't Back Down" is a song by American hip hop artist Eminem, recorded as the fourth track on his seventh studio album Recovery . The song features a guest appearance from American pop singer Pink, who sings the song's chorus...
", "Cinderella Man", "Talkin' 2 Myself", and "Cold Wind Blows" also debuted on the Hot 100 without release as singles.
Commercial performance
The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, with first-week sales of 741,000 copies in the United States. It became Eminem's sixth album to debut at number one in the United States. In its second week of release it remained at number-one and sold 313,000 copies. It also entered at number one on Billboard
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
s R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Rap Albums
Top Rap Albums
Top Rap Albums is a record chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks Rap and hip-hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart began publication for the week of November 13, 2004....
chart. In its ninth week of release the album remained at number one for its seventh non-consecutive week and sold 116,000 copies. In its first nine weeks of release the album sold over 100,000 copies every week. As of March 2011, the album is No. 1 on the all-time list of albums with the most digital sales, with over 922,000 copies digitally sold As of July 2011, the album broke the digital record and became the first album to sell 1 million digital copies. It held the record for most digital albums sold, but was later outsold by Adele
Adele (singer)
Adele Laurie Blue Adkins , known professionally as Adele, is an English singer-songwriter. She was the first recipient of the Brit Awards Critics' Choice and was named the number-one predicted breakthrough act of 2008 in an annual BBC poll of music critics, Sound of 2008...
's 21
21 (Adele album)
21 is the second studio album by English recording artist Adele. Released on 24 January 2011 in the United Kingdom and most of Europe, and on 22 February 2011 in North America, the album was named after the age of the singer at the time of its production...
album. As of September 25, 2011, the album has sold 4,040,000 copies in the United States. Since it's United States release, the album has spent a total of 27 weeks in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 which is more than any other hip-hop album since 2003. It spent 7 weeks at number one in both the US & UK amongst over nations.
The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
, selling 140,000 copies in its first week in the United Kingdom. In Canada, the album sold 85,000 copies in its first week and debuted at number one on Canada's Albums Chart
Canadian Albums Chart
The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS...
. The album spent six consecutive weeks at number one, and retook the top spot after one week at number 2. As of August 18, 2010, the album has sold 277,000 copies in Canada. In Japan, Oricon
Oricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
recorded a debut of number six with 20,678 units sold. It also went gold in its first week in New Zealand and Australia, debuting at number one in both countries. The album has since sold over 210,000 copies in Australia, certifying it triple platinum there.
By the end of its release year, and only six months after release, Recovery had sold over 5,700,000 albums worldwide. It was the best-selling album of 2010 in the United States with 3.4 million copies, and it sold 2.3 million copies in other territories for a total of 5.7 million copies worldwide. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, it was also the best-selling album of 2010 worldwide. The album was the best-selling album in Canada in 2010 selling 435,000 copies; more than double the album in 2nd place. Recovery was the third best-selling album of 2010 in Australia. As of September 25, 2011, the album had sold 4,040,000 copies in the United States.
Critical response
Upon its release, Recovery received generally positive reviews from music critics. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 63, based on 28 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Despite viewing its structure as inconsistent, Allmusic writer David Jeffries gave it 3½ out of 5 stars and praised Eminem's performance as potent and energetic, writing "It may be flawed and the rapper’s attitude is sometimes one step ahead of his output, but he hasn’t sounded this unfiltered and proud since The Marshall Mathers LP
The Marshall Mathers LP
The Marshall Mathers LP is the third studio album by American rapper Eminem. Released May 23, 2000, the album sold more than 1.76 million copies in its first week just in the US. In 2001, the album won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album and was nominated for Album of the Year...
". Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
s Simon Vozick-Levinson noted "gratuitous nastiness" as a weakness, but stated "Eminem's lyrical craftsmanship is second to none [...] and there are flashes of new maturity". Benjamin Meadows-Ingrim of Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
viewed that its introspective content "plays to his strengths". Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
writer Jody Rosen
Jody Rosen
Jody Rosen is an American journalist and author. He is the music critic for the online magazine Slate, and the author of White Christmas: The Story of an American Song....
called it Eminem's "most casual-sounding album in years". USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
s Steve Jones called it "a strong return to the form" for Eminem and complimented his transition in "tone and attitude" from his previous work, stating "He aims for substance over shock value, vividly spilling out details of his various tribulations". Sam Wolfson of NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
gave it a 7/10 rating and called Eminem "self aware, technically advanced, intelligent, able to go at speeds other than full throttle".
However, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
regarded Eminem as "frustratingly limited in his topical range" and called Recovery "the most insular of all his releases". Andy Gill of The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
gave it 3 out of 5 stars and stated "there's nothing here quite as witty or engaging as" on his previous work. Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
's Jayson Greene perceived a lack of lyrical depth and wrote "for the first time in his career, he actually sounds clumsy". Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
writer Greg Kot
Greg Kot
Greg Kot is an American writer and journalist. Since 1990, Kot has been the music critic at the Chicago Tribune, where he has covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and business issues...
wrote that it "is brutally short on hooks and, most of all, fun. The subversive humor is long gone, and his cultural references... remain dated". Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
's M.T. Richards called the album's material "unsurprisingly hollow" and panned Eminem's lyrics, stating "his punchlines rarely resonate; his nasal bark of a delivery grows tiring fast; and his pop culture references... are inane". Mike Schiller of PopMatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
commended Eminem's "sense of self-awareness", but noted "his hateful asides and misogynist tendencies" and inconsistent shifts in subject matter as the album's flaws. The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
s Kitty Empire
Kitty Empire
Kitty Empire is the pen name of a British writer and music critic.Empire was born in Montreal, Quebec in 1970 and brought up in Canada, Italy and Egypt before arriving in Britain in 1988....
described it as "a long march through Mathers's contradictions, punctuated with splatter-flick levels of lyrical gore". Sean O'Neal of The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
gave it a B rating and commented "while the endless atonement metaphors threaten to make Recovery a maudlin affair, at moments like these, Eminem soars over his lowered expectations".
Despite praising Eminem's lyricism, The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
s Paul MacInnes viewed its production as a weakness and wrote "a piecemeal approach to production (Dr. Dre has just one credit) leaves the album lacking an abiding mood and drowning in fashionable soft-rock samples". Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
writer Jeff Weiss complimented Eminem's "dazzling internal patterns and clever word play", but panned its production and called it "monochromatic and monotonous". Sean Fennessey of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
viewed that its songs are "weighed down by some brutal samples" and called it "a morose picture of an artist grappling, and often losing his grip". Giving it a 7/10 rating, RapReviews writer Jesal Padania noted various inconsistencies and found the album "enjoyable", while writing "One individual might completely love it, another hate it – for pretty much the same reasons... not his best, nor his worst, but either people will listen incessantly or barely at all. There is no middle ground". In his consumder guide for MSN Music
MSN Music
MSN Music was a part of the MSN web services. It delivered music news, music videos, spotlights on new music, artist information, and live performances of artists. In 2004, Microsoft created an MSN Music download store to compete with Apple's iTunes Music Store, though its sales in comparison were...
, critic Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
gave Recovery an A- rating and complimented Eminem's "long-recessive sense of play", while commenting that "The comeback is for Eminem, not Slim Shady‑-and for Marshall at his most martial. His most confessional as well".
Accolades
The album appeared on numerous music critics' and publications' end-of-year albums lists. Rolling Stone placed the album at number 9 on their list of 30 best albums of the 2010. SpinSpin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
placed the album at number 38 on its 40 Best Albums list for 2010. Rolling Stone placed Recovery and its single "Not Afraid" on their lists of Best Albums of 2010 and Best Singles of 2010 at number 9 and number 24 respectively. It earned Eminem ten Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominations at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Rap Album, winning the latter. As of April 2011, the album has been nominated for Top Billboard 200 Album and Top Rap Album for the 2011 Billboard Music Awards
Track listing
(co.) Co-producer(add.) Additional production
Sample credits
Information taken from Recovery liner notes:
- "Cold Wind Blows" contains elements from "Patriotic Song" performed by Gringo.
- "On Fire" contains a sample of "Peace and Love" as performed by MandrillMandrill (band)Mandrill is an American funk band formed in Brooklyn, New York City in 1968. The band was formed by three brothers: Carlos Wilson , Lou Wilson and Ric Wilson . The brothers were born in Panama and grew up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn...
. - "Going Through Changes" contains a sample of "ChangesChanges (Black Sabbath song)"Changes" is a song by Black Sabbath. It first appeared on Black Sabbath, Vol. 4 which was released in 1972. It is a ballad about relationship loss...
" by Black SabbathBlack SabbathBlack Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
. - "No Love" features a sample of "What Is Love" performed by HaddawayHaddawayNestor Alexander Haddaway , better known by his stage name Haddaway, is a Trinidadian-German singer. He is most famous for his worldwide 1993 hit, "What Is Love".- Early life :...
. - "Space Bound" features an interpolation of "Song for Bob" by Nick CaveNick CaveNicholas Edward "Nick" Cave is an Australian musician, songwriter, author, screenwriter, and occasional film actor.He is best known for his work as a frontman of the critically acclaimed rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, established in 1984, a group known for its eclectic influences and...
and Warren EllisWarren Ellis (musician)Warren Ellis is an Australian multi-instrumentalist and composer, best known for his work with Dirty Three, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and Grinderman and his soundtrack scores with Nick Cave. He plays violin, piano, bouzouki, guitar, flute, mandolin, and tenor guitar...
. (uncredited) - "Space Bound" features an interpolation of "DriveDrive (R.E.M. song)"Drive" was the lead single and first track from R.E.M.'s eighth studio album Automatic for the People in 1992. Although it was not as successful as previous lead singles "Losing My Religion," "Stand," or "The One I Love" in the United States, it became R.E.M.'s then second biggest hit on the UK...
" by R.E.M.R.E.M.R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
(uncredited) - "You're Never Over" contains a sample of "Cry Little SisterCry Little Sister"Cry Little Sister" is a single by Gerard McMann and Michael Mainieri from the 1987 soundtrack to the film The Lost Boys. The album peaked at number 15 on the Billboard 200, the single did not chart in the U.S....
" by Gerard McMann. - "Untitled" features a sample of "You Don't Own MeYou Don't Own Me"You Don't Own Me" is a popular song written by the Philadelphia songwriters John Madara and David White, and recorded by Lesley Gore in 1963, when Gore was 17 years old. The song reached No...
" as performed by Lesley GoreLesley GoreLesley Gore is an American singer. She is perhaps best known for her 1963 pop hit "It's My Party", which she recorded at the age of 16. Following the hit, she became one of the most recognized teen pop singers of the 1960s.- Biography :Gore was born in New York City, New York. She was raised in...
.
Personnel
Credits for Recovery adapted from Allmusic.- Erik Alcock – Guitar
- Julian Alexander – Art Direction, Design
- Mark Batson – Keyboards
- Kip Blackshire – Choir, Chorus
- Boi 1da – Producer
- Nick Brongers – Producer
- Matthew Burnett – Strings, Additional Production
- Damon "Bing" Chatman – Assistant Coordinator
- Larry Chatman – Production Coordination, Project Coordinator
- Christian Clancy – Marketing
- Kristen Ashley Cole – Choir, Chorus
- M. Crawford – Composer
- Sean Cruse – Guitar
- Kal "Boogie" Dellaportas – Engineer
- Terry Dexter – Choir, Chorus
- DJ Khalil – Producer
- DJ Mormile – A&R
- Dr. Dre – Producer, Executive Producer, Mixing
- Eminem – Mixing, Additional Production
- Jordan Evans – Strings, Additional Production
- John Fisher – Studio Manager
- Michael Gamble – Engineer
- Brian "Big Bass" Gardner – Mastering
- Christal Garrick II – Choir, Chorus
- Nikki Grier – Vocals
- Havoc – Producer
- Emile Haynie – Producer
- Howie Herbst – Assistant Engineer
- Matt Huber – Assistant Engineer
- Chin Injeti – Bass, Guitar
- Tony Iommi – Composer
- Mauricio Iragorri – Engineer
- Joe Strange – Engineer, Assistant Engineer
- Jim Jonsin – Keyboards, Programming, Producer
- Sly Jordan – Saxophone, Vocals, Choir, Chorus
- Just Blaze – Producer, Mixing
- Danny Keyz – Keyboards
- Alex Da Kid – Producer, Mixing
- Rich King – Choir, Chorus
- Trevor Lawrence – Keyboards
- Spike Lindsey – Assistant Engineer
- Nick Low-Beer – Drum Programming
- Magnedo – Producer
- Deborah Mannis-Gardner – Sample Clearance
- Robert Marks – Engineer
- Rob Marks – Mixing
- Marshall Mathers – Composer
- Steve McEwan – Guitar, Vocals on track 10
- Tracy McNew – A&R
- Alex Merzin – Engineer
- Danny Morris – Keyboards
- Mr. Porter – Producer
- Dawaun Parker – Keyboards
- Nigel Parry – Photography
- Chris "Trife" Patilis – Assistant Engineer
- Kirdis Postelle – Project Coordinator
- Dwayne "Supa Dups" Chin Quee – Drums, Producer, Engineer, Drum Arrangements
- Rahki – Keyboards, Programming
- Khalil Abdul Rahman – Keyboards, Drum Programming
- Luis Resto – Keyboards
- Robert Reyes – Assistant Engineer, Vocal Engineer
- Makeba Riddick – Vocal Producer
- Liz Rodriguez – Vocals
- Paul D. Rosenberg – Executive Producer
- Matthew "Boi 1da" Samuels – Drums, Engineer
- Jason Sangerman – Marketing Coordinator
- Les Scurry – Production Coordination
- Daniel Seeff – Guitar
- Script Shepherd – Producer
- Manny Smith – A&R
- Mike Strange – Guitar (Acoustic), Bass, Guitar, Keyboards, Engineer, Mixing
- Marcos Tovar – Engineer
- Bill Ward – Composer
- Ryan West – Engineer, Mixing
- Jason Wilkie – Assistant Engineer
- Andre Young – Composer
- Ianthe Zevos – Creative Director
Weekly charts
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
1 |
| Austria Albums Chart | 1 |
| Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) | 2 |
| Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) | 2 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
1 |
| Czech Albums Chart | 8 |
| Denmark Albums Chart | 1 |
| European Top 100 Albums European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100... |
1 |
| Finland Albums Chart | 8 |
| France Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
2 |
| Germany Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
2 |
| Greece Albums Chart IFPI Greece International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Greece or IFPI Greece is the Greek branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification body for Greece. Currently two charts are compiled, one for sales of... |
1 |
| Hungarian Albums Chart Mahasz Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary.... |
20 |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
1 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 6 |
| Mexico Albums Chart | 34 |
| Netherlands Albums Chart | 2 |
| New Zealand Album Charts | 1 |
| Norway Album Charts VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
2 |
| Polish Album Charts OLiS OLiS is the official list of the highest selling music albums in Poland. The list exists since October 23, 2000 and is provided by ZPAV.... |
2 |
| Russian Albums Chart | 2 |
| Spanish Albums Chart | 13 |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 5 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 1 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
1 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
1 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
1 |
| US Top Rap Albums Top Rap Albums Top Rap Albums is a record chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks Rap and hip-hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart began publication for the week of November 13, 2004.... |
1 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2010) | Position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
1 |
| Danish Albums Chart | 12 |
| European Top 100 Albums European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100... |
4 |
| German Albums Chart | 12 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 5 |
| Poland Albums Chart OLiS OLiS is the official list of the highest selling music albums in Poland. The list exists since October 23, 2000 and is provided by ZPAV.... |
34 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
9 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
2 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
3× Platinum |
| Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... |
Platinum |
| Belgium Belgium Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many... |
Gold |
| Europe Europe Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting... |
Platinum |
| France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... |
Platinum |
| GCC Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf , also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council , is a political and economic union of the Arab states bordering the Persian Gulf and constituting the Arabian Peninsula, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates... |
Gold |
| Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
Platinum |
| Ireland Ireland Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth... |
3× Platinum |
| Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... |
Gold |
| Japan Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south... |
Gold |
| New Zealand New Zealand New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga... |
Platinum |
| Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... |
Platinum |
| Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... |
Gold |
| Switzerland Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition.... |
Platinum |
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
2× Platinum |
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
4× Platinum |
Non-single chart positions
| Year | Song | Chart peak positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
||
| 2010 | "25 to Life" | 92 | 90 | — |
| "Cold Wind Blows" | 71 | — | — | |
| "Talkin' 2 Myself" | 88 | 97 | — | |
| "Won't Back Down" | 62 | 65 | 82 | |
Chart precession and succession
Release history
| Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalog | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
June 18, 2010 | Shady Shady Records Shady Records is an American record label specializing in hip hop music. Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg founded the label in 1999 after the release of The Slim Shady LP.Since the formation, the label has signed nine acts... , Aftermath Aftermath Entertainment Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by Dr. Dre. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through, Universal Music Group's Interscope Records. Current acts include Dr. Dre, Eminem, 50 Cent and Slim da Mobster, with former acts including Busta Rhymes, Game, Raekwon,... , Interscope Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:... |
CD, Digital download Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment... |
2739452 | |
| European Union European Union The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958... (excluding the UK) |
Polydor Polydor Records Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone... |
||||
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
June 21, 2010 | B003KUSUG8 | |||
| United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
Shady Shady Records Shady Records is an American record label specializing in hip hop music. Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg founded the label in 1999 after the release of The Slim Shady LP.Since the formation, the label has signed nine acts... , Aftermath Aftermath Entertainment Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by Dr. Dre. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through, Universal Music Group's Interscope Records. Current acts include Dr. Dre, Eminem, 50 Cent and Slim da Mobster, with former acts including Busta Rhymes, Game, Raekwon,... , Interscope Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:... |
B0014411 | |||
| Japan Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south... |
June 23, 2010 | Universal Music Universal Music Group Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations... |
UICS1214 | ||
| Brazil Brazil Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people... |
July 6, 2010 | 602527394527 |
External links
- Recovery at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- Recovery at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...