Rap icon Eminem has made a stunning comeback by taking the number one spot on the US chart with his latest album, "The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce)".
This album's debut displaced Taylor Swift's most recent release from the top position.
The experienced rapper secured his 11th No. 1 spot in the US, making it the most successful week in 2024 for a rap album.
Eminem's latest feat displaced Taylor Swift’s 11th album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” released on April 19th.
Based on data from Luminate, a platform that tracks music and entertainment trends, Eminem's latest album had an impressive first-week performance, selling 281,000 units by July 19.
The album also accumulated 220 million on-demand streams and 114,000 traditional sales, solidifying Eminem's status as one of the most successful rappers ever.
Eminem's album debut puts him on par with artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Barbra Streisand, and Kanye West, tying them for the fifth-most No. 1 album rankings of all time.
Eminem | Shutterstock
The list of most No. 1 albums is led by The Beatles, Jay-Z, Taylor Swift, and Drake, with 19, 14, and 13 No. 1 albums, respectively.
Eminem's new album equally topped the UK albums, tying him with U2 and David Bowie, who have 11 No 1s each.
The pop star's previous albums topped the charts in the UK in 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2010, 2013, 2017, and 2020.
Despite this success, the latest album has been met with mixed to negative reviews.
Stevie Chick writing for The Independent said in a two star review, “Much of The Death Of Slim Shady resembles a Telegraph column: the ham-fisted mashing of people’s buttons, the blethering about ‘the PC police’ and ‘Gen Z’ coming to get him. Anything, it seems, to get a reaction.”
He said further: “On ‘Habits’, Mathers spits that his critics are ‘mad because they can’t tame me’ – but there’s nothing edgy about these creaky routines. Like a lot who harp on about a ‘woke mind-virus’, Mathers is the one who sounds like he has brainworms, forever bleating about pronouns then on ‘Road Rage’, offering the entirely unsolicited information that his “dick just won’t expand” around trans people. OK, mate.”
Before the release of his album, Eminem told his fans that "The Death of Slim Shady" is a conceptual album and should be listened to in order.
Meanwhile, Taylor Swift is currently preparing to return to the UK in August for the final five shows of the European leg of her record-breaking Eras tour.
The pop superstars will perform five nights at Wembley Stadium in London from 15 to 20 August, with support from rock band Paramore.
The Tortured Poets Department is still at No. 2 on the UK albums chart, while the pop singer Griff is at No. 3 with her debut, Vertigo.