Eminem announces new album as he 'says goodbye to alter ego'

After an elaborate April Fools Day prank earlier this month, Eminem has actually announced his next highly anticipated album.

Before the rapper made an appearance at the NFL Draft in Detroit on Thursday night, he announced his twelfth album "The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grace)" with a true crime-themed video. Poised as a trailer for a fake show, Detroit Murder Files, a narrator announces: "Through his complex and oft-criticized, tongue-twisting rhymes, the anti-hero known as Slim Shady has had no shortage of enemies."

Rapper and close friend to Marshall Mathers, 50 Cent, makes a cameo appearance, telling the camera: "He’s not a friend, he’s a psychopath."

The rapper might be retiring Slim Shady
(Image: Getty Images)

"The same rude lyrics and controversial antics may have ultimately led to his demise," the narrator says over clips of Eminem's old music videos play. A man with a pixilated face and warped voice adds: "Who killed Slim Shady?"

The narrator continues: "Join me as we recreate the events that led to the murder of Slim Shady." The screen then shows a bloody crime scene with the words: "The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grace). Summer 2024."

"I knew it was just a matter of time for Slim," the pixilated man says, moving to grab something off-camera as it's revealed to be Eminem himself.

Fans of the rapper were excited at the announcement, with one fan writing on social media: "This is it. The goat is back."

He announced the album with a video
(Image: Corbis via Getty Images)





Slim Shady has been his alter ego since 1997
(Image: Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)

Others were worried about "the death" of Eminem's alter ego. "Is he saying goodbye to his iconic alter ego? It's definitely got fans buzzing and speculating about what's to come?" one fan speculated on Twitter, now X.

Slim Shady first made an appearance in 1997 with the rapper's Slim Shady EP. Now almost thirty years later, it seems that Marshall might be retiring him.

Eminem last released an album, titled Music to Be Murdered By, in a surprise drop back in 2020. Last month, Dr. Dre - Eminem's long time collaborator - announced on Jimmy Kimmel Live that a new Eminem album will be out this year.

Then, on April Fool's Day, the rapper posted a video on Instagram announcing a faux album, a sequel to his 1996 debut project Infinite. But it seems like this time, the rapper is for real.