what eminem should do on shady records compilation

7 Things Eminem Should Do On 'Shady XV' Compilation

August 26, 2014 - 5:27 pm by Chris Yuscavage

In late 2006, Eminem and Shady Records released the label's first official compilation, Eminem Presents: The Re-Up. It featured tracks from Shady artists like 50 Cent, Obie Trice, Stat Quo, Bobby Creekwater, D-12, and, of course, Eminem. And it was—how do we put this?—not great. There were some songs that represented the Shady brand well, like the album's lead single, "You Don't Know." But in general, The Re-Up was disjointed and didn't do much to get us excited about some of the lesser-known Shady artists.

That isn't stopping Em from going the compilation route again. Yesterday, he announced that he's planning to release a double album called Shady XV in honor of his label's 15th anniversary later this year. The first album will feature some of the greatest Shady Records hits from over the years. But the second one will, once again, shine a spotlight on the current Shady roster, which includes Yelawolf, Slaughterhouse and D-12. To help him make this compilation more successful than his last one, here are the 7 things Eminem should do on Shady XV.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

cypher what eminem should do on shady records compilation

1. Have the Shady roster record a cypher for the album's intro similar to the one they recorded for BET a few years ago. Remember the BET Shady 2.0 Cypher? Of course you do (if not, we've included it below). It featured Yelawolf, Joe Budden, Crooked I, Joell Ortiz, Royce Da 5'9", and Eminem dropping bars and was a perfect representation of what Shady is all about. The Shady artists need to capture that sentiment again on Shady XV, so why not take the same exact approach and make the intro another cypher? [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed] Photo Credit: Getty Images

dr. dre what eminem should do on shady records compilation

2. Ask Dr. Dre to produce several songs for the album, if not the entire album. Dre is busy with a lot of other things these days. But back in 1999, when Shady Records was founded, Dre and Eminem did most of the production for the label. So it's only right that Dre make at least one or two appearances for the label's anniversary. If Em was somehow about to convince him to do all of the production, it would also help keep one cohesive sound throughout the project. Photo Credit: Getty Images

d12 what eminem should do on shady records compilation

3. Record one D-12 song. That's it. This isn't a knock against D-12 (R.I.P. Proof). We've loved some of the songs they've recorded over the years. But if Em decides to include some or all of D-12 on Shady XV, he needs to limit the amount of D-12 that he gives us. One strong contribution from them would be great and would do more for them than five or six decent songs would do. Photo Credit: Getty Images

yelawolf what eminem should do on shady records compilation

4. Make sure the Yelawolf song that appears on the album really knocks. It feels like Yela is at a crossroads right now. Some of the buzz he had at the beginning of his career has worn off and people are wondering what he's going to do next. A strong contribution to the Shady XV project could do wonders for him and help jumpstart things again. Photo Credit: Getty Images

budden what eminem should do on shady records compilation

5. Give the Internet the Eminem/Joe Budden song that they've been asking for for years now. Back in 2010 when Budden released "Black Cloud," there were rumors that floated around indicating that Em was going to jump on a remix to the track. It never happened but it proved how much people wanted to hear Em and Joe on a song together. Shady XV gives them the perfect opportunity to give the world a collaboration. Photo Credit: Getty Images

50 cent what eminem should do on shady records compilation

6. Invite 50 Cent to be on at least one Shady XV song. 50 is independent now. But he's said time and time again that Em is his "favorite white boy," so we don't think it would be difficult for Em to convince 50 to slide a verse his way. Em can't record an entire album celebrating Shady's legacy and not include 50, right? Let's hope not. Photo Credit: Getty Images

track list what eminem should do on shady records compilation

7. Keep the number of tracks to a minimum. Our biggest complaint about The Re-Up was that it had too many songs on it. Including remixes and bonus tracks, the compilation had 23 (!) tracks total. That's just too much music for a compilation. Shady XV should include 8 to 10 really strong songs that celebrate Shady. Is that too much to ask? Photo Credit: Getty Images

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