The Slim Shady LP
Rock Bottom
Eminem
Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis
36
End
263
Internal
88
Multi
238
Slant
9
Chain
Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight
[Chorus]
That's rock bottom,✦ when this life makes✦ you mad enough✦ to kill
That's rock bottom,✦ when you want somethin'✦ bad enough✦ to steal
That's rock bottom,✦ when you feel like you've had it up to here
'Cause you mad enough✦ to scream, but you sad enough✦ to tear
That's rock bottom,✦ when this life makes✦ you mad enough✦ to kill
That's rock bottom,✦ when you want somethin'✦ bad enough✦ to steal
That's rock bottom,✦ when you feel like you've had it up to here
'Cause you mad enough✦ to scream, but you sad enough✦ to tear
[Verse 2]
My life is full of empty✦ promises and broken✦ dreams
I'm hopin'✦ things look up, but there ain't no job openings
I feel discouraged, hungry✦ and malnourished✦
Livin'✦ in this house with no furnace, unfurnished✦
And I'm sick of workin'✦ dead-end jobs with lame pay
And I'm tired✦ of bein' hired✦ and fired✦ the same day
But fuck it, if you know the rules✦ to the game, play
'Cause when we die, we know we all goin' the same way
'Cause it's cool to be the player, but it sucks to be the fan
When all you need is bucks to be the man, plus a luxury✦ sedan✦
Or comfortable and roomy✦ in a 6
But they threw me in the mix with all these gloomy✦ lunatics
Who walk around✦ depressed,✦ and smoke a pound of cess a day
And yesterday went by so quick, it seems like it was just today✦
My daughter wants to throw the ball, but I'm too stressed✦ to play
Live half my life and throw the rest away✦
[Chorus]
That's rock bottom,✦ when this life makes✦ you mad enough✦ to kill
That's rock bottom,✦ when you want somethin'✦ bad enough✦ to steal
That's rock bottom,✦ when you feel like you've had it up to here
'Cause you mad enough✦ to scream, but you sad enough✦ to tear
That's rock bottom,✦ when this life makes✦ you mad enough✦ to kill
That's rock bottom,✦ when you want somethin'✦ bad enough✦ to steal
That's rock bottom,✦ when you feel like you've had it up to here
'Cause you mad enough✦ to scream, but you sad enough✦ to tear
[Verse 3]
There's✦ people that love me and people that hate me (Yup)
But it's the evil that made me
This backstabbin', deceitful and shady✦ (Mhm)
I want the money,✦ the women,✦ the fortune and fame
That means I end up burnin'✦ in Hell, scorchin' in flame
That means I'm stealin' your checkbook and forgin'✦ your name
This lifetime bliss for eternal torture and pain
'Cause right now, I feel like I've just hit the rock bottom✦
I've got problems, now everybody on my block's got 'em (Duh)
I'm screamin' like them two cops when 2Pac shot 'em
Holdin'✦ two Glocks, hope your doors got new locks on 'em
My daughter's feet ain't got no shoes or socks on 'em
And them rings you wearin'✦ look like they got a few rocks on 'em
And while you flaunt 'em
I could be takin'✦ 'em to shops to pawn 'em
I got a couple of rings and a brand-new watch, you want 'em?
'Cause I ain't never✦ went gold off one song
I'm runnin'✦ up on someone's lawn with guns drawn
[Chorus]
That's rock bottom,✦ when this life makes✦ you mad enough✦ to kill
That's rock bottom,✦ when you want somethin'✦ bad enough✦ to steal
That's rock bottom,✦ when you feel like you've had it up to here
'Cause you mad enough✦ to scream, but you sad enough✦ to tear
That's rock bottom,✦ when this life makes✦ you mad enough✦ to kill
That's rock bottom,✦ when you want somethin'✦ bad enough✦ to steal
That's rock bottom,✦ when you feel like you've had it up to here
'Cause you mad enough✦ to scream, but you sad enough✦ to tear
That's rock bottom✦
Technical Breakdown
8.5
Multisyllabic Rhymes9.5
Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)
Internal Rhymes9.5
Rhymes within a line (data-driven)
Wordplay / Double Entendres7.5
Clever language, metaphors, punchlines
Cadence / Rhythm9.0
Flow variation and timing (data-driven)
Vocabulary Complexity6.0
Range and depth of words used (data-driven)
Delivery / Breath Control8.5
Performance and control
Computed Score8.52
Production
— Bass Brothers, Jeff Bass, Mark BassBe the first to rate the production
Critic Analysis
RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™
Eminem utilizes a relentless internal rhyme structure and a 'trap-door' cadence to reflect the cyclical, inescapable nature of poverty, grounding high-technicality rapping in stark, relatable social realism.
A
9.5
Multisyllabic
9.5
Internal Rhymes
9
Cadence / Flow
6
Vocabulary
7.5
Wordplay
8.5
Delivery
Multi-syllabic chainingEnjambment for rhythmic tensionVowel-heavy assonance chainsCyclical rhyme returns
Rhyme Architecture: The verse relies on dense, multi-syllabic internal rhymes (e.g., 'discouraged/hungry/malnourished/furnace/unfurnished') tethered to a consistent AAAA end-rhyme structure that underscores the feeling of being trapped.
Verified Doubles & Entendres
"sick of workin' dead-end jobs with lame pay / And I'm tired of bein' hired and fired the same day"
① The literal frustration of job insecurity and rapid turnover in low-wage employment.② A play on the phonetic similarity of 'hired/fired', emphasizing how quickly the subject's economic status resets to zero.
"it's cool to be the player, but it sucks to be the fan / When all you need is bucks to be the man"
① Sports metaphor comparing the 'player' (the person with money/influence) to the 'fan' (the observer/bystander).② A social critique where 'player' refers to those succeeding in the 'game' of capitalism, and 'fan' denotes those marginalized by the same system.
Unmatched rhythmic density for 1999
Visceral portrayal of socioeconomic frustration
Seamless integration of internal rhymes without sacrificing narrative flow
Occasional reliance on conventional 'struggle-rap' tropes
Vocabulary is intentionally utilitarian rather than expansive