The 1990s were a time of shifting cultural ideologies and landscapes, as the music-consuming populace ditched the long-haired glam rock stars and electronic musicians of the 1980s for a darker, edgier, and harder sound. The Watts Riots in the wake of the Rodney King beating by the Los Angeles Police Department, the O.J. Simpson trial, and the Bill Clinton presidency and impeachment all played a part in the cultural tonal shift across America.

Perhaps no other artist exemplified the blending of multiple musical disciplines, the frustration and anger of late 1990s America, and the sadomachostic and darker elements of art quite like rapper Eminem, and in 2000, the world was in the palm of his hands. The Marshall Mathers LP, Eminem's seminal and most impactful work - one that would define his career and ripple through his current music and life - turned 25 years old on May 23rd, and its complicated legacy on both his career and music in general has gained a renewed focus in its wake.

Some of the linked music and videos used in this piece contain language and themes that may not be suitable for all readers. Reader and listener discretion is advised.

Understanding The World Before The Album's Release

"And They Blame It On Marilyn, And The Heroin; Where Were The Parents At?"

In the mid to late 1990s, multiple cultural events took place in an almost concurrent fashion, reshaping and restructuring the way we ingest news, the media, and the stories of the day. In the wake of the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton, and the years following the O.J. Simpson murder trial, two gunmen entered Columbine High School in Littleton, CO, killing 13 students and one teacher before taking their own lives on April 20, 1999, becoming the first school shooting covered en masse by the national media.

In its aftermath, a renewed focus was brought on multiple items that were considered counterculture of the time. This included a heavy focus on rock musician Marilyn Manson, an artist whose work represented a darker, more aggressive tone than other popular pop artists of the time, like Britney Spears and *NSYNC.

While there was no evidence found that Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the perpetrators of the Columbine massacre, were fans of Manson's music, he faced intense and immediate widespread criticism and backlash from politicians and religious leaders for his imagery and themes. He also became the boogeyman of Suburban America, playing up his alleged Satanic and violent themes as the reason for the murders.

At the same time as Manson became Public Enemy #1, Eminem was becoming a household name, and his debut album, The Slim Shady LP, was released less than two months before the Columbine shootings and contained similar graphic and violent imagery in his lyrics. This made him another prime target for the ire of the public, seeking answers as to why this shooting and this violence occurred. As the intensity of the backlash grew, so did his popularity, and out of the fire came his sophomore release, The Marshall Mathers LP.

The Marshall Mathers LP Was A Massive Success, And There Was No Looking Back

"Quit Trying To Censor Music, This Is For Your Kid's Amusement"

When The Marshall Mathers LP was released on May 23, 2000, it was an immediate success for Eminem, selling 1.78 million copies in its first week. It sured Snoop Dogg's 1993 album Doggystyle as the fastest-selling rap album of all time, has since been certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America, having sold over 11 million copies since its release, and was nominated for Best Rap Album and Album Of The Year at the 43rd Grammy Awards, winning the former.

Filtered in between the vicious "Marshall Mathers" and the nonsensical "Under The Influence", which featured his rap group D12 in their mainstream coming-out party, was the critically acclaimed "Stan." This is a song about an obsessed fan who devolves into madness and murder, and has become part of the American vernacular as a person who is obsessed with a particular artist or performer.

The album was not without its detractors, however, who denounced Eminem for his homophobic lyrics, a common theme in most rap music produced by his contemporaries of the time. It was protested by gay rights organizations like GLAAD, who felt his music promoted an atmosphere of violence against the LGBTQIA+ community.

Along with its accolades, and in spite of his detractors, the album catapulted Eminem into superstardom. It thrust him into the forefront of a changing artistic landscape where music fans seemed desperate to connect with music that made them feel something more than what the bubble gum pop artists of the day provided. ​​​​​​

The Marshall Mathers LP Holds Up 25 Years Later As A Product Of Its Time

"And To Think, It's Just Little Ol' Me, Mr. Don't-Give-A-F***, Still Won't Leave"

Deviating slightly from the more lyrically dense and cartoonish elements of his first effort, Eminem took the opportunity to address a plethora of themes on The Marshall Mathers LP, including his volatile childhood, beefs with other performers, his unexpected rise to stardom, and his frustrations and anger at a society and system that failed him. Through the offensive and often brash lyrical content of the album, a sadness lingers through his words, parsing an unknown and often uncomfortable world of fame while trying to maintain some level of normalcy while trying to raise his daughter.

The album itself remains his most cohesive and intricate offering and has echoed through his modern work, revisiting the themes of multiple songs and imagery from its cuts over the next two decades. An older, wiser Eminem has held himself able in the shadow of The Marshall Mathers LP, most notably on his 2013 album The Marshall Mathers LP 2.

Eminem expresses a quiet rage at the perils of society and the double standards that accompany them.

There, he takes himself to task over his perceived dwindling career and sacrifices on the "Stan" sequel "Bad Guy," the introspective, Rihanna-backed "The Monster", and his deeply mournful, apologetic letter to his mother, Debbie, who was the frequent target of his scathing lyrics on his 2000 effort, in the Nate Ruess-featured "Headlights".

Within the bars of 18 songs contained on The Marshall Mathers LP, Eminem expresses a quiet rage at the perils of society and the double standards that accompany them, using an art form that had previously only seen unsuccessful or comically terrible efforts by the white performers before him. 25 years later, Eminem remains rap music's vulgar Bruce Springsteen. He's a hero of the underclass, the megaphone and the mouthpiece for a generation who felt the American Dream slipping away from them in real time, and the voice that guided them more than their shocked and appalled, out-of-touch parents who couldn't possibly understand.