I Need a Doctor

So I have it on repeat, i.e., Eminem & Dre’s new song—I didn’t like it right away because it confused me. Eminem isn’t angry screaming bitching ranting. It didn’t fit, it wasn’t classic. I didn’t expect it. So then I turned down the bass, and really listened to it. He’s talking to someone, he’s talking to Dre. This song is a fucking epic love song. Don’t get all crazy homo on me now—love song between two friends. Chill out. But seriously, it’s frikkin beautiful if you’re digesting his every word. It’s not classic Em with crazy rhymes or thought provoking metaphors—it’s just real. Songs like this give this weird insight into the industry, you get a glimpse into the beef that we’re really not supposed to see. I didn’t know any details about Dre, never followed him. Let’s face it, I thought Eminem made Dre, not the other way around. Relax crazies. I know Dre signed him, but honestly, Eminem and Dre became synonymous, they were one and the same, they were prodigies of one another. And now I’m listening to the great lengths that Dre went to for Eminem and it’s bizarre. It’s this weird entry into this secret society that only few people really ever get to see. It’s confusing me almost.

So we learn a few things. We hear about Dr. Dre’s son, died at 20 from a heroin/morphine overdose in ‘08. That’s rough. I mean really, imagine the heartache. Em is a classic ode to death kinda guy, and we see this in easily half of his music. Think Going Through Changes, You’re Never Over, 25 To life—and this from Recovery alone. Then there’s his reference to his return, which we’ve all seen a million times, okay, I love you and we get it you’re back. Now all that is insignificant. The best comes just before the first chorus--

“But it just dawned on me, you lost a son.
See this light in you? It’s dark
Let me turn on the lights, brighten me, enlighten you.”

I’m so used to him complaining—as much as it pains me to say it, that’s really what a lot of his music is. He complains, and bitches about and at people. We so rarely ever see this side, he’s looking to help someone else. It’s kinda magical really, kinda like finally. And then there’s this,

“you saved my life, and now maybe it’s my turn to save yours”

We don’t know enough about him. We’ve heard his struggles/troubles/mom&kim issues. But really, we know nothing. So I like another version, another glimpse into his story. Something that tells us about getting started. I’m a big loser and I could go on about this forever because I’m so obsessed. It’s a good song, it’s a great song. Dre sounds fantastic too, but honestly, still incomparable. He announces his retirement after this final CD, but I mean really, how many times have these guys retired and come back?

It’s a love story. There. That’s my point. It’s a thank you to a good friend. Good friends are hard to find. Honestly. They are. They leave, they talk shit, they lie, they hate. Most friends you make in life wont be there at the end of it. This is just how it is. There are things we need to accept these facts in life and move on. But every once in a while it’s nice to say thank you, it’s nice to make sure people know that they’re appreciated, to make sure that those good friends, past and present, know that once upon a time they were there and they meant something. This is what this is. And this is why it’s so fantastic. Guys don’t tell their boys they love them, they don’t hug and say thanks and do ‘girl stuff’ like that. But when you can do it in a sexy Eminem way, then you’re forgiven.