Jelly Roll calls Eminem his “childhood hero” after ‘Death Of Slim Shady’ feature

15 July, 2024

A composite image of Jelly Roll and Eminem

Jelly Roll has revealed Eminem as one of his “childhood heroes” after collaborating with the the rapper on the latter’s new album ‘The Death Of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce)’.

On Saturday (July 13), Jelly Roll – real name Jason Bradley DeFord – took to Instagram to share and appreciation post in celebration of Eminem’s 12th studio album, which arrived on July 12. Jelly Roll’s 2020 track ‘Save Me’ was sampled on the closing track of ‘The Death Of Slim Shady’, titled ‘Somebody Save Me’.

DeFord wrote: “I always say my childhood hero’s lived somewhere between Willie Nelson and Eminem. As a teenager (and still today) I could recite every song on the ‘Slim Shady’ album, the ‘Marshall Mathers’ album and ‘The Eminem Show'”.

He continued: “When I bonded out of jail at 17 years old and was sneaking into cyphers and battles in Nashville they would also play the ‘Lose Yourself’ beat when I came out on stage at the freestyle battles. I related to every word Eminem wrote. I understand him and felt like he understood me, which was rare cause I spent most of my life feeling misunderstood.”

So you can imagine how I felt when I got that the call that Eminem would be sampling my song ‘Save Me’ on his new album. And for him to use the song to discuss the other side of what could’ve happened if he would’ve allowed his demons to win brought me to tears. If you haven’t heard it yet, check out ‘Somebody Save Me’ on Eminem’s new album ‘The Death Of Slim Shady’”.

See the full post below.

On ‘Somebody Save Me’, Eminem raps about an alternate reality in which he never got sober in April 2008 and lost his life to drug addiction, and how he would’ve missed his kids growing up and his daughter Hailie Jade’s wedding. Eminem infamously had a near-fatal drug overdose in 2007.

Listen to Eminem’s ‘Somebody Save Me’ featuring Jelly Roll below.

 

Eminem’s 2020 studio album, ‘Music to Be Murdered By’ scored a three-star review from NME, writing: “He’s ready to pass on hard-earned wisdom before running his mouth like he hasn’t learned his own lessons. And he offers casual fans a hook or two before embarking on another lyrical work-out. It would actually be quite disappointing to see Eminem grow up entirely, and he seems to be having fun as he navigates his own idiosyncratic space.”

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