After four years of only being featured on tracks from other artists, Eminem returned to the music scene Friday, releasing the first single off his next album.
The track, titled "Walk on Water," takes a much slower pace than past Eminem songs and features Beyonce on the chorus.
In the past, singles released before the album all tended to be an energetic song with the rapper yelling bars into a microphone. This time, however, it appears Eminem chose to settle with a much more personal song.
Tackling insecurities and reminding the world that even though he's considered the "Rap God," he's just a human at the end of the day, and it's clear "Walk on Water" is one of the most personal tracks the artist has written to date.
The chorus opens with Beyonce singing as a piano plays softly in the background.
"I walk on water/But I ain't no Jesus/I walk on water/But only when it freezes."
As the first verse begins, the piano notes grow stronger, but no other instruments come in like singles he's released in the past.
Instead, listeners hear nothing but Marshall Mathers voicing his own insecurities as nothing more than a human.
"Why are expectations so high?" he asks. "Is it the bar I set?"
It's clear from the start this isn't going to be just another track about how he's at the top of the rap game. "Walk on Water" is a song that shows fans some of the rapper's deepest thoughts.
The energy grows in the third chorus as violins join the piano notes. The bridge is repeated toward the end of the song, with Beyonce voicing more of Eminem's thoughts: "Cause I'm only human, just like you."
However, the most interesting part of the track doesn't come until the last few seconds.
The piano notes get replaced by horns and record scratches as Eminem yells "'Cause I'm just a man, but as long as I got a mic, I got light."
Although the track list for the upcoming album — likely named Revival — hasn't been released, it wouldn't be a surprise if "Walk on the Water" is used as the opening track, especially as the energetic last few seconds would flow easily into a faster-paced song used as a second track.
But "Walk on Water" isn't just a single to help promote the album. It's a track that shows a side of Eminem fans have never heard before. Instead of the confident, cocky Eminem, fans are shown the human side of Eminem — a side hidden from the media spotlight and microphones in recording booths until now.
