
The album earned Eminem Grammy Award nominations in three categories at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards: Best Rap Album, Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for the song " Encore", and Best Rap Solo Performance for the song " Mockingbird".Įncore provoked some controversy over anti- Bush lyrics and lyrics that parodied and targeted Michael Jackson, who was upset about Eminem's depiction of him in the video for " Just Lose It". Steve Jones from USA Today also spoke positively about the album, calling Eminem's producing and lyrical skills as "top-flight" and noting that the record explores "the many sides of Marshall Mathers". In Rolling Stone, he wrote that Encore was not as "astonishing" as The Marshall Mathers LP, but praised Eminem for maturing his lyrical abilities while retaining his sense of humor. Robert Christgau said Eminem still sounded "funny, catchy and clever, and irreverent past his allotted time", noting that even the bonus tracks "keep on pushing". Stephen Thomas Erlewine was more enthusiastic in his review for AllMusic, calling the music "spartan", built on "simple unadorned beats and keyboard loops", and the lyrics "plain-spoken and literal". He concluded his review by saying that Eminem has become "predictable" on Encore, something that he wasn't before. David Browne from Entertainment Weekly said Eminem "sacrifices the rich, multi-textured productions" of his two previous albums for "thug-life monotony, cultural zingers for petty music-biz score-settling, and probing self-analysis for juvenile humor". BBC Music's Adam Webb believed it starts "fantastically" but ends "abominably", writing that it has too many "low points". Scott Plangenhoef, writing for Pitchfork Media called Encore a "transitional record" and "the sound of a man who seems bored of re-branding and playing celebrity games".
Encore eminem vinyl full#
Josh Love from Stylus Magazine felt Eminem was "dying" with this album, whose concept was "end-to-end mea culpa", full of "clarifications, rectifications and excuses", revising the history of "a man who knows he doesn't have much time left". At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 64, based on 26 reviews.
Encore eminem vinyl professional#
This cover is used for the Shady Collector's Edition.Ĭritical reception Professional ratings Aggregate scoresĮncore received generally positive reviews from critics, but received more of a negative response compared to his past three albums. The second cover features the same audience from the inlay on a black background with a blood splat on the top right. Some pictures show Eminem shooting everybody, which makes a reference to the ending of the album's title track. The note is also seen in the album's booklet, where Eminem is writing the note. To my fans, I'm Sorry, Marshall" with a bullet underneath the note. The CD itself shows a note written by Eminem saying "To my family & all my friends, thank you for everything, I will always love you. The inlay shows Eminem holding the pistol in his mouth without the jacket of his shirt and tie. The tray insert features Eminem holding a gun behind his back. The album featured two covers, the first cover features Eminem standing in front of an audience, bowing to the crowd. Retrospectively, Encore is often considered to be one of Eminem's two worst albums alongside Revival. The album has sold 11 million copies worldwide and was certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on December 17, 2004.Įncore provoked some controversy over anti-Bush lyrics and lyrics that parodied and targeted Jackson, who was upset about Eminem's depiction of him in the video for " Just Lose It".

Ĭritical reception of Encore was less favorable than Eminem's previous albums, with most of the second half being heavily criticized for its lackluster quality and lack of lyrical content, though " Mockingbird" and " Like Toy Soldiers" were particularly highly praised and retrospectively have been noted as being some of Eminem's best songs. The album features more comedic themes and lyrics than Eminem's previous albums.

Bush and a parody towards Michael Jackson. The album contains several lyrical themes, most notably Eminem's opposition to then-US president George W. As reflected on the album cover-Eminem taking a bow-the album was widely considered to be Eminem's final album of new material. Its release date was originally set for November 16, 2004, but Eminem moved the release date to five days earlier after the album was leaked to the internet. It was released on November 12, 2004, by Aftermath Entertainment, Shady Records, and Interscope Records. Encore (stylized as ƎNCORE) is the fifth studio album by American rapper Eminem.
