Eminem Presents: The Re-Up CD

Shady protegees Obie Trice, Stat Quo, Swifty McVay, Kuniva, and Mr. Porter, newcomers Bobby Creekwater and Ca$his, as well as established stars like 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, and Nate Dogg are allotted time to shine. One of THE RE-UP's strongest assets, though, is the participation of another industry giant, the Alchemist, who (aside from laying down a handful of the album's tightest beats) worked as DJ archivist, putting the track list together to provide the necessary street mixtape feel.

A little over two years after his hugely successful fourth solo album, ENCORE, the Warren, Michigan, native and rap icon returns with a compilation album--originally conceived as a mixtape--that serves to showcase his own label, Shady Records, and its formidable line-up of artists. While EMINEM PRESENTS: THE RE-UP is far from a solo album, Eminem himself is responsible for much of the album's heat, producing the majority of the tracks and making vocal appearances on seven songs (including three solo joints).

Personnel: Eminem (rap vocals); Bobby Creekwater, 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, Nate Dogg, Obie Trice, Proof, Bizarre, Kuniva, Stat Quo, Cashis (rap vocals).

Entertainment Weekly (p.87) - "[With] taut cuts....The two Slim Shady solo tracks are the high points." -- Grade: B