Well, it’s official — Eminem dropped the tracklist for his upcoming Revival album to much internet buzz (both good and bad). For the most part, the guest list is composed of singers, which means they’ll likely appear on the chorus of their respective songs. But with Eminem at the wheel, it’s tough to know exactly what to expect — the release of the Beyoncé-featuring “Walk On Water” single was proof of that.
Fans already know what the Bey collab sounds like, but who are the rest of the guests on the album? And what might they sound like? We’ve rounded them up below.
Phresher
Brooklyn rapper Phresher — who worked closely with Desiigner before his “Panda” fame — has been making a lot of noise since his single “Wait A Minute” popped off, spawning remixes from names like 50 Cent, Remy Ma and RiFF RAFF. Most recently, his song “Right Now” with Hip Hop’s it-girl Cardi B did some serious numbers. In many ways, he feels like the wild card on this album but he’s an intriguing choice.
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Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran has undoubtedly had a great 2017. Propelled by his hits “Shape Of You” and “Perfect,” he was recently named the most streamed artist of 2017 by Spotify (by a comfortable margin). Sheeran’s crossover appeal is evident, but there’s always the possibility this record will sound absolutely nothing like naysayers think it will. Sheeran has been known to drop battle bars too, so maybe this will be the gritty bar-for-bar cypher track many fans have been craving from Em…
Alicia Keys
When Alicia Keys is on your track, one of three things is about to happen: something super soulful, something with classic Hip Hop undertones or a huge power ballad. While it’s easy to imagine Eminem going any of those directions, it seems possible that fans can expect a song with a huge, powerful — possibly anthemic — chorus and bridge à la “Empire State Of Mind.”
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X Ambassadors
Ithaca, New York, rock band X Ambassadors hasn’t released a new full body of work since its 2015 debut VHS, which featured the hit singles “Jungle” and “Renegades.” The group’s crossover into Hip Hop territory has been organic, with them appearing on soundtracks for Bright alongside Machine Gun Kelly, and teaming with Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa, Imagine Dragons, Logic and Ty Dolla $ign on “Sucker For Pain” off the Suicide Squad OST. Their sound — especially when considering the piano-driven “Walk On Water” — seems like it could make for a great fit.
Skylar Grey
The least surprising feature on the project. The singer has collaborated with Eminem in the past, dating back to 2011’s “I Need a Doctor.” Aside from a handful of features, she helped pen “Love the Way You Lie,” parts one and two. On top of this, she wrote the chorus for “Walk On Water” and performed it with Em on Saturday Night Live last month. She’s also racked up writing credits for Kehlani and has worked with X Ambassadors in the past (small world…).
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Kehlani
Singer Kehlani, who recently landed a Grammy nomination for her song “Distraction,” and Eminem have plenty in common — on a personal level. They’ve both dealt with some demons, which have produced authentic and personal relationships with their music. There’s a lot of potential for them to make something incredibly deep to the effect of “Love The Way You Lie” off the Recovery Album.
P!nk
No surprise here — these two have collaborated many times in the past. They first* collaborated on “Won’t Back Down” off of Em’s 2010 album Recovery and again on P!nk’s 2012 track “Here Comes The Weekend.” They teamed up again on “Revenge,” which was the first single off P!nk’s new Beautiful Trauma album. P!nk hilariously revealed that “Revenge” came about after she sent Em a wine-fueled manifesto, to which he simply replied “OK.”
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*Correction: This article erroneously stated P!nk and Eminem first collaborated in 2013. We apologize for the confusion.
Revival drops on December 15. Stay tuned to HipHopDX for more info and analysis.
