These lyrics from Eminem's freestyles at the '97 Rap Olympics show him in peak form. Much like Eddie Murphy, Robin Williams, and Whoopi Goldberg back in the 80's when they were on cocaine, Eminem was much more raw and vibrant before he cut down on the swearing and decided to sell out.
Eminem's spot at the Rap Olympics was secured by Wendy Day, after he fortuitously met her and gave her a copy of Infinite, his initially poorly received debut album. During his trip to the Rap Olympics, Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg gave the debut to people at Interscope Records and were finally able to generate excitement about it, securing a radio debut on the famous Wake Up Show with Sway and Tech. Dr. Dre heard this show, and the rest is history.
For the following rhymes, Eminem garnered second place at the Rap Coalition's 1997 Rap Olympics. The Rap Olympics, despite colorful jokes suggested by the Chatterbox, (12 August 2002, 07:36 karmaflux wonders how Death Row Records' olympic team would do in the riflery events.) is merely a freestyle competition. Many contested the decision that Eminem received only second place, maintaining that Eminem's status as a white outsider and his bilious venom, which pissed off too many people, precluded this decision.
Each break represents a different freestyle battle.
All lyrics transcribed to the best of my ability. I could not find a transcription elsewhere, so all mistakes are my own.
The MP3 of this performance is typically labelled "Eminem - '97 Rap Olympics" or "Eminem - Rap Olympics".
I would appreciate any corrections or suggestions for the garbled lyrics, as indicated by (???).
(mc: eminem go)
ha ha ha ha alright bust it
ha ha ha ha one two
ha ha ha ha alright look:
i'm going to tell you this for your own benefit
your shit was dope as hell
especially when you wrote 90% of it
what you need to do it practice on your freestyle
when you come out missing like snoop dogg's police file
(???) this shit that I'm spittin' belitt'n'
you're going to swear to god that shit was written
but it wasn't
i'll kill a dozen rappers when i'm buzzin'
guzzlin'
beat your ass like a jealous husband
next (???) north
when you go in a coma longer than (???) cut the machine off
cut the damn machine
get a clean cloth to wipe this bloody video screen off
(mic fumbling sound) (???) your weed...
(mc: you suck suck! give me that mutherfuckin' mic!)
(mc: ladies ain't first this time)
(someone in the crowd: that's fucked up!)
aight aight i never battled a female before
(mc: aight figure it out)
ha ha ha aight
i'm moving in for the kill and i got the trap set
i can tell you're wack as fuck and i ain't even heard you rap yet
look at you thinkin: i'm about to whip his ass
cuz i'm going to do some written shit
plus i get to go last
well guess what
even if i go first it's no worst
my shit still from demonic (???) verse
i'm going to slice you like a ginsu
and anything you say can and will be used against you
in the court of law
i'm short and raw
take your fucking shit and cut it off
yo! you want to be a dope MC?
look don't get mad start taking your period out on me
(mic fumbling sounds) cuz i ain't gonna...
(mc: whoa, whoa, whoa!)
(mc: eminem... thirty second, thirty seconds)
ha ha ha
aight bust it bust it bust it bust it
aight
you want to represent on the microphone
but you rap sleazily
i ain't about to battle this fake ass eazy-e
there ain't no way i'm going to do this bullshit
i don't give a fuck, i'm loaded up with a full clip
time of the month you couldn't get the (tape?) of the day
take him away
i ripped him like a papier mache
i heard you rap before you ain't about shit
this whole battle was mismatched like your outfit
try to battle me and get your mouth split
you sold out like ticketmaster outlet
ha ha i bust and i (crust?)
i don't give a fuck
ain't no way you can fuck with us
yo i'm giving back with (pimp?) shit
i'll laminate that shit in a badge and wear it at the rap olympics,
plus (millenium?) (mic fumbling sound)
(mc: whoa whoa whoa... (chuckling) slow down!)
(eminem?: DAMN!)
(mc: aight)
blah blah blah blah blah blah blah
stop babblin'
you're so fuckin' wack i'm going to walk away while you're battlin'
fuck that. i'm on a brand new solo mission
to make sure wendy day kicks you out of the rap coalition
i throw a switch at an execution
with an overdose of devotion
don't talk back i'm the dope bitch
so who you sound like on the mic
there was only one tupac
you're thug style is one big psyche
take a big hike
bitch you can't catch me
your best rhymes still ain't shit like (???)
what the fuck you wanna do?
I'll battle any MC in your crew
and i don't give a fuck, i slaughter boys
especially wack-ass MCs who will wear fake ass corduroys
(mc: damn damn damn!)
mic yo
bust it
i'm about to make this mic short circuit
(???) is wack as fuck this shit fits you perfect
i've got so many ways to diss you that i'm playful with you
i'll let a razor slit you
till they staple stitch you
and everyone in this place will miss you
if you try to turn my facial tissue into a racial issue
nobody's hearing you
you're a wack liar
damn, all your white jokes just backfired!
cuz bitch you walking up the wrong street
like (???) all your boys you were beat by a honky
i don't give a fuck i kill you
bitch you better respect me like I look familiar
anything you say I'm gonna kill you.
grill you
when i fucking drill you
(mc: alright, alright)
(someone else: eminem! eminem!)
Notes:
- In lyrical battling, the worst insult is "writing," meaning to write lyrics before hand. It is my belief, from hearing amazing Eminem lines in "freestyles" repeated in later album tracks, that Eminem, like nearly all battle MCs (and, for that matter, Oscar Wilde with regard to his famous quips and witticisms), does "write" and pass off particular punchy lines as impromptu. Do not take this to mean that Eminem cannot "freestyle"; By most rap enthusiasts' reckoning, Eminem is considered first-and-foremost a battle MC. One easy-to-find MP3 bootleg (search for "Eminem" and "Stretch") is a freestyle he did with Stretch Armstrong, in which Eminem freestyles and every five seconds or so Stretch gives him a word to incorporate and rhyme with.
- The unidentified MC's in the above refer to the judges.
- Mic fumbling sounds correspond to the microphone being forcibly taken from Eminem.
- A RealVideo file containing video of the above performances used to be floating around the web, but the link is now dead. A Kazaa search may yield it. Eminem's demeanor is worth investing half an hour to find it. Not one second goes by in which he is not wearing headphones.
- I love Slim Shady and I am not a teenage boy going through puberty.