“The discovery of a wine is of greater moment than the discovery of a constellation. The universe is too full of stars.” - Benjamin Franklin
Here at FoodJuke, we agree with Ben. So we made this. Our wine guide has all of the basics that you need to know. Have a quick look at our guide and we promise that you'll gladly receive the wine list at the restaurant and have some idea of what you are looking at!
“I
didn't have nothin' going for me... school, home... until I found something I
loved, which was music, and that changed everything.” – Eminem
Since
1997, Eminem's music has been played all around the world and resulted
in unprecedented success. But how has he gone through so much
emotional trauma and a serious drug addiction and managed to achieve so much? We look
deeper into his music and explore the stories that hide
within the lyrics written by one of the greatest hip-hop artists ever.
Marshall Bruce Mathers III a.k.a. Eminem,
the lyrical genius raised in Detroit, Michigan, combines emotion, word play and an intimate backing
story to create a fresh, engaging and frequently controversial sound. He went from living in a
trailer in a very poor neighbourhood, to being crowned the King of the Detroit
underground rap scene which catapulted him toward national and international recognition.
A
good way to begin to understand Eminem's story is by watching the semi-autobiography ‘8
Mile’. It tells the story of how Eminem, portrayed by the character Jimmy Smith
(played by Eminem), goes from being an unknown rapper to being a local
superstar. The film also shows the relationships he has with friends and enemies throughout
his early life.
8 Mile (2002)
Eminem, according to his lyrics, had a terrible relationship with his mother, Debbie Mathers. He blames his
mother for both his mental state in ‘The
Apple’ and his drug addiction in ‘My Mom’. If your mother was like that
you’d be a little crazy too, right? Yes is the answer you were looking for.
Eminem - My Mom
In
1996 the rap group D12, The Dirty Dozen, was created. Eminem, Proof, Bizarre,
Kuniva, Kon Artis, Bugz and their alter egos made up the twelve members of the
group. ‘My Band’, ‘Purple Pills’ and ‘How Come’ are a few of their songs
that are definitely worth listening to. The group is releasing a reunion album
this year, including 3 songs featuring Eminem. Listen to
this when it comes as out it’s dedicated to their fallen member Proof, who died in
a shooting outside the CCC nightclub in Detroit in April 2006. It will be raw and full of emotion.
D12 - Purple Pills
In the spring of 1997 Dr. Dre signed Eminem
to his label, Aftermath Entertainment, after hearing Eminem’s debut EP; "The
Slim Shady EP". Dr. Dre spoke about what happened when he heard the demo in an interview a few years later, “In my entire career in the music industry,
I have never found anything from a demo tape or a CD. When I heard this, I
said, 'Find him. Now.”
Eminem - Bad Meets Evil
Dr. Dre faced criticism from various people in
the industry for signing a white rapper, he simply said "I don't give a
fuck if you're purple: If you can kick it, I'm working with you." Eminem was nervous, understandably of course, "I didn't want to be starstruck or kiss his ass too
much..... I'm just a little boy from Detroit. I had never seen stars, let
alone Dr. Dre.” “The Slim Shady LP” went triple
platinum by the end of the year.
Slim Shady, the "drug-dealing, bloodthirsty thug who spits furious rhymes about murder, rape, drugs and living by the law of the urban jungle" was Eminem’s alter ego that was created for D12. Shady is Eminem’s evil twin, who he blames for
the bad things in his life. Sounds like a nice guy?Listen to ‘I’m Shady’ and ‘Evil Twin’; they’ll give you more of an insight into who Slim
Shady really is.
Eminem - Evil Twin
At the peak of Eminem’s drug addiction he
was taking 60 Valium and 30 Vicodin a day. This addiction had a huge impact on the style
of his music; ‘Under the Influence’ and ‘Déjà Vu’ are two songs that relate to
very different stages of his drug abuse.‘Under
the Influence’ is about D12’s drug use whereas‘Déjà vu’ has a completely different perspective about it. This
change in attitude to drugs happened after Eminem overdosed in 2007. After he
went to rehab he released “Relapse” which
contains a strong influence from his drug use and past mental state.
Eminem - Under the Influence
If you haven’t already heard the recently
released“The Marshall Mathers LP
II”, you should. It is the follow up to the fastest-selling solo album
in United States history; if that’s not the best endorsement to listen I don’t
know what is. If
you don’t want to listen to the whole thing, fair enough, but at least give ‘Headlights’ and ‘Rap God’ and a try. The
latterproves just how much of a
lyrical genius and an extremely skilled rapper Eminem is and ‘Headlights’ is an extremely touching
song where he apologises to his mother for the songs he’s made.
Eminem - Rap God
In a cruelly ironic way, it appears that
Eminem’s childhood and experiences in life have throughout the years become the
catalyst for all of the fantastic tunes he releases. The question is how long will
he carry on producing such amazing music? We hope for a long time yet. Peace
out Rabbit.
Which country currently holds the biggest house music market in the world per capita? Believe it or not, South Africa.
Originating from Chicago in the 1980's, house music has travelled worldwide and been the catalyst for some brilliant fusions of sounds to emerge. French house, Detroit techno, Kuduro (Angolan House) have all found national popularity, whilst South African house has crept up onto the international stage. South African pop music is now essentially all house music and it is now starting to be heard worldwide.
Black Coffee
The end of Apartheid in the early 1990's allowed international music to flood into townships across South Africa creating this fantastic genre. It is the kind of music that you can chill or dance to. Makes sense? If not, have a listen, you'll understand.
We've selected a few tracks just to get you introduced.
Chris Malinchak - So Good To Me
Chris Malinchak isn't South African, he is an American DJ. But in this song there is a definite South African influence. That dum-dum-dum-dum-dum bit (you know the one) and the general vibe of the tune just screams S.A. house.
Liquideep - Welcome Aboard
Liquideep formed in Johannesburg in 2007. These two guys have gone to a more soulful style of house whilst incorporating an incredibly funky, chilled out vibe. They've already sold over 5 million albums worldwide and that number will continue to grow. Check out Fairytale & Alone if you like this.
DJ Kent - Falling (Feat. Maleh)
DJ Kent is one of many who have jumped from the South African clubbing scene into producing. This tune has reached 'Robin S - Show Me Love' status (when everyone screams in the club when it comes on) in South Africa and we can understand why.
DJ Fresh, Euphonik Feat. Nyanda - Cool & Deadly
DJ Fresh & Euphonik have become two of South Africa's top DJ's, radio presenters and producers. They both incorporate a more electronic and European style of house into their music. They teamed up with Nyanda from Brick and Lace (remember Love Is Wicked?) for Cool & Deadly. This tune took over many European clubbing destinations over the summer.
Black Coffee - Superman (Feat. Bucie)
Black Coffee is one of South Africa's most influential music artists. He has won over 10 music awards and has created one of the most successful music labels in South African history, Soulistic Music. He studied Jazz at Natal Tech College because he felt as a producer he needed to deepen his music knowledge. His dedication shows in his final product. A blend between traditional South African music and modern house music, Black Coffee has basically nailed it.
