Eminem Readies "Relapse" Party, Visits "Kimmel" and "Family Guy"

With Relapse out tomorrow, Eminem took over television this weekend. First, Em sat down for a Jimmy Kimmel Live interview before treating the crowd — which included 200 out-of-work Detroit auto workers — to a performance of his new album's snarky "We Made You." The laid-off workers from Eminem's hometown also received invites to a Michigan club where the rapper will perform a secret CD release show tomorrow; Em posted details about how to get into the gig on his MySpace page last night.

According to the post, tickets for the "secret" show will be given out at a first-come, first-serve basis at Roseville, Michigan's Record Time starting at 5 p.m. today. It's one ticket per person and the show is All Ages. Venue information and showtime will be printed on the ticket, but Billboard reports the show will go down at Detroit's Sound Board theater in the Motor City Casino. An added bonus: The secret show will feature DJ Jazzy Jeff as Special Guest.

Eminem's first visit to Kimmel was slightly awkward at first. A seemingly nervous Em was reluctant to banter and mocked the audience's cues to clap. But he warmed up, talking at length about Dr. Dre and his "sponsor" Elton John. When it was time for the outdoor performance of "We Made You" Eminem found his groove, and he's got two more Kimmel gigs on the way. The first, scheduled for May 19th will reportedly feature two songs from tomorrow's secret show, and the second goes down on May 22nd.

As for Em's animated cameo with Family Guy's Stewie last night, that appearance boiled down to a series of one-liners (like asking Stewie if he was gay) and a few Relapse plugs between commercial breaks.

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Song Stories

“1999”

Prince | 1982

“I don’t consider myself a great poet,” Prince told Rolling Stone. “I just know I’m here to say what’s on my mind.” In the case of the apocalyptic party anthem “1999,” he was worried about then-president Ronald Reagan’s foreign policies. The song’s melody is based on a riff borrowed from the Mamas and Papas’ “Monday, Monday,” and Prince originally envisioned the first verse with three-part harmony but later split the vocals between himself and members of the Revolution. Because Warner Bros., with whom Prince was locked in a contractual battle, owned the original’s masters, Prince rerecorded the song and appropriately released that version in 1999.

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