Eminem: A Letter to Afeni Shakur and a Childhood Dream

Two weeks before the release of Loyal to the Game, MTV News published a conversation with Eminem on November 29, 2004, which had taken place in Detroit a few weeks earlier. In it, he explained how he had gotten the album: he had asked.

A Short Letter

He had written to Afeni Shakur asking to be allowed to produce the album, Eminem said. As a longtime fan, he admired Tupac’s music, his personality, “everything” about him. Producing just one or two tracks for him would be a dream. In the letter, he explained to her what her son had meant to him and to many others in the industry. Afeni gave him her blessing, and Eminem expressed his gratitude for the opportunity.

“I Went Crazy”

He was given Tupac’s a cappella tracks, and he had essentially “gone crazy” with them, Eminem said. For a long time, he had dreamed of getting to a point where he could produce other artists, especially someone he had looked up to. According to MTV, he supplied the beats for 13 tracks on the album; Billboard had spoken of twelve in early November. The first single was Thugs Get Lonely Too with Nate Dogg.

At that time, the entire album was already circulating illegally on the internet. In a statement, Amaru Entertainment asked fans not to download it. It was still scheduled to be released on December 14; Afeni Shakur intended to put part of the proceeds into an arts center in Stone Mountain, Georgia.