Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked

Sampled On: "“Stan” from The Marshall Mathers LP

What Was Sampled: Eminem samples Dido's “Thank You” chorus for his 2000 fan single, adding thunderstorm sounds over her lyrics:

My tea's gone cold
I'm wondering why
I got out of bed at all
The morning rain clouds up my window
And I can't see at all
And even if I could, it'd all be grey
But your picture on my wall
It reminds me that it's not so bad

It's not so bad

Eminem says Dido's original song actually inspired him to write “Stan”:to write “Stan”:

When I heard “your picture on my wall,” I thought, “Yo, this could be about somebody who takes me too seriously.” I knew what I was writing about before I wrote it. I see visions for everything I write. This was one of those.

Sampled On: “Houdini” from The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce)

What Was Sampled: Eminem samples the “Abracadabra” beat and uses the chorus for his 2024 single. Steve Miller Band's original lyrics were:

Abra, abracadabra
I wanna reach out and grab ya
Abra, abracadabra
Abracadabra

Eminem's updated lyrics are:

Abra, abracadabra
(And for my last trick) I'm bout to reach in my bag, bruh
Abra, abracadabra
(And for my last trick) Just like that and I'm back, bro

The “Abracadabra” sample fits Eminem's magician theme in “Houdini,” where he claims this is his “last trick” (likely a reference to the rapper's 12th album)killing off his alter ego, Slim Shady). Steve Miller took to Instagram to share his thoughtson being sampled:

Marshall Mathers is an exception. He respects the art and his influencers. Being in his process feels good while I sing and play the music I love. I am honored.

Sampled On: “My Name Is” from The Slim Shady LP

What Was Sampled: Eminem raps over a sample of the “I Got The…” beat, mostly in the chorus, adding the lyrics:

Hi, my name is, what?
My name is, who?
My name is, chka-chka, Slim Shady

Eminem discussed sampling“I Got The…”:

Dre put on the Labi Siffre record, and I said, “Hi! My name is!” That beat spoke to me. I thought, “Yo, this is it, this is my shot. If I don’t impress this guy, I’m going home and I’m screwed.” I knew Dre was not easy to please. I made sure every beat Dre had a spot for got a rhyme, or I made one right then.

Now it is hard to hear the original instrumental without wanting to sing Eminem's lyrics.

Sampled On: “Like Toy Soldiers” from Encore

What Was Sampled: The intro and chorus of “Like Toy Soldiers” come from “Toy Soldiers.” Eminem uses the sample to talk about the effects of joining his friends' rap feuds during his career:

Step by step, heart to heart
Left, right, left, we all fall down
Like toy soldiers
Bit by bit, torn apart
We never win but the battle wages on
Toy soldiers.

When Martika heard Eminem wanted to sample her song, she first thought a friend was joking. Finding out it was real, she happily agreed, calling it “Really cool."

Hearing Eminem rap over my voice feels trippy. I felt honored he wanted to sample my song like that. I knew other artists had been sampled before, so I thought, cool, I'm in the club of artists sampled by the youth. I love it!

She doesn't expect Eminem's young fans to know her work, but she hopes their moms appreciate it.

Sampled On: "Sing for the Momentfrom The Eminem Show

What Was Sampled: Eminem raps over the “Dream On” beat before Steven Tyler's chorus hits, with Eminem screaming, “Sing it!” on top:

Sing with me, sing for the year
Sing for the laughter and sing for the tear
Sing it with me, it's just for today
Maybe tomorrow the good Lord will take you away

Eminem uses the sample to show why he sings and who he sings for, stating:

I was facing critics who did not get why people connected with me. I saw I was becoming like the rappers I looked up to as a kid. I identified with and loved LL Cool J and the Beastie Boys. I felt if everyone didn't get their music, it did not matter—they spoke to me. That is what I tried to make people see on this track. I might not be cool to you, but there is a kid in Nebraska, or somewhere, that I am talking to. I do not care if you are listening because he is listening. That is who I direct my material at.

Sampled On: "Remind Mefrom Revival

What Was Sampled: Eminem uses the '80s song's heavy beat and changes some lyrics. Joan Jett originally sang:

I love rock n' roll
So put another dime in the jukebox, baby
I love rock n' roll
So come and take your time
And dance with me (Yeah, me)

In “Remind Me,” Eminem raps:

I love you
'Cause you remind me of me
That's why I love you
'Cause you’re like me (Yeah, me)

More of Jett's vocals are also sampled, such as:

Said, "Can I take you home
Where we can be alone?

Eminem humorously changes the lyrics to suggest he only loves someone because they resemble him.

Sampled On: "Berzerkfrom The Marshall Mathers LP 2

What Was Sampled: Eminem samples Billy Squier's upbeat sounds and some of his lyrics in “Berzerk,” including:

Everybody
Grab your vial

The “Berzerk” music video shows clips from “The Stroke” music video.

Billy Squier's associate confirmed Squier was happywith Eminem's sample:

Billy is not doing interviews now, but he is pleased and flattered by Em's treatment... slammin' track, great hook... the Motor City Madman is alive and ill.

Sampled On: "Going Through Changesfrom Recovery

What Was Sampled: Eminem uses Ozzy Osbourne's “Changes” lyrics as his chorus:

I'm going through changes
I'm going through changes

The song covers Eminem's life changes, including the ups and downs of fame and his drug addiction.

Eminem's producer Emile described how the song was used.Emile chose the song to be sampled.Black Sabbath - 'Changes' appears in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked.

I dropped the needle on Black Sabbath’s ‘Going Through Changes,’ and he walked in just as I did. The track started, and we both looked at each other like, ‘That could be the one.’

Sampled On: Simon & Garfunkel - 'The Sound of Silence' is in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked."Darkness is the music to be murdered by in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked." from Music to Be Murdered By is 'Hello, darkness, my old friend'.

What Was Sampled: 'Hello, darkness, my old friend'.Eminem weaves the 1964 song in, letting its opening line echo through the rap:

Hello, darkness, my old friend.

The song tells the story of the Las Vegas mass shooting on October 1, 2017, from the killer Stephen Paddock's view. The harsh use of “The Sound of Silence” highlights the senselessness of Paddock’s actions.

On Eminem's site, below the “Darkness” music video, the words appear:WHEN WILL THIS END? WHEN ENOUGH PEOPLE CARE." with a link to the Resiliency & Justice Center.Resiliency & Justice Center..

Sampled On: Haddaway - 'What Is Love' is in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked."Crazy in Love is in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked." from The Eminem Show is the source for Crazy in Love in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked.

What Was Sampled: 'Tell myself that I was doing alright'.Some music and lyrics from “Crazy on You” get slightly sped up for “Crazy in Love”:

Tell myself that I was doing alright.
There's nothing left to do tonight.
But go crazy on you.
Crazy on you.
Let me go crazy, crazy on you.

Eminem samples the song to show how crazy a woman must be to love him—as crazy as he is—and how that kind of relationship likely fails.

Heart band member Nancy Wilson said that when she met Eminem, he was a "really good guy. He was pretty complicated but nice."pretty complicated. but nice."

I thought it was cool to blend genres. You can show up in somebody else’s world. It can stop you from staying stuck in your own genre, for instance. You can float through genres now and then.

Sampled On: Haddaway - 'What Is Love' is in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked."No Love is in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked." featuring Lil Wayne from Recovery is the source for No Love in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked.

What Was Sampled: 'What is love?'Throughout “No Love,” you hear clips of the “What Is Love” chorus:

What is love?
Oh, baby don't hurt me.
Don't hurt me, no more.

In the Eminem version, the lyrics sound more echoey and haunting:

Love, love.
Love, love, love.
Don't hurt me.
Don't hurt me no more.

Haddaway's song shows unrequited love. Eminem uses its words to seem talk about his rap career and people who let him down, telling them they cannot hurt him “no more.”

Sampled On: The Zombies - 'Time of the Season' is in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked."Rhyme or Reason is the source for The Zombies - 'Time of the Season' in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked." from The Marshall Mathers LP 2 is the source for Rhyme or Reason in Eminem's 15 Best Sampled Songs, Ranked.

What Was Sampled: 'What's your name?'“Rhyme or Reason” uses the riff from “Time of the Season” and takes some of its lyrics:

What's your name?
Who's your daddy?

Eminem answers these two questions, saying his name is Marshall and he has no dad. When asked if he is rich like him, Eminem just laughs. The Zombies then ask, “Has he taken any time to show you what you need to live?” This makes Eminem’s second verse attack his absent father.

Eminem also borrows ideas from the Zombies' original lyrics:

It's the time of the season.
When love runs high.
Give it to me easy in this time.
Let me try with pleasured hands.
Take you in the sun to promised lands.
Show you every one.
This is the time of the season for loving.

In "Rhyme or Reason," he changes those lyrics to:

This is the time of the season.
Hate runs high.
I won't give it to you easy this time.
I take back what's mine.
With pleasured hands.
Torture everyone; that is my plan.
My job here isn't done.
There is no rhyme or reason for nothing.

Sampled On: "Love Game" featuring Kendrick Lamar from The Marshall Mathers LP 2

What Was Sampled: Wayne Fontana's fun beat and the lyrics appear here, including:

Game of love, love, love, love
La, la, la, la, la, love

Eminem and Kendrick Lamar sing about women who've wronged them while they played the “game of love.”

Ed Sheeran says Eminem asked Lamar to record in the studio without his friends as a test to see if he had a ghostwriteror not. When Lamar proved he writes his own lyrics, Eminem called him “the best.”

Sampled On: "Beautiful" from Relapse

What Was Sampled: Eminem opens the song with Paul Rodgers singing:

Lately I've been hard to reach.
I've been too long on my own.
Everybody has a private world where they can be alone.
Are you calling me?
Are you tryin' to get through?
Are you reaching out for me?
I'm reaching out for you.

Eminem wrote the song - which deals with his depression - while he was still in rehab. The sample captures the isolation he felt and his desire to reach out to loved ones.

Sampled On: "Guilty Conscience" from The Slim Shady LP

What Was Sampled: Eminem and Dr. Dre rap over the beat of “Pigs Go Home." Stein's instrumental song appeared on the soundtrack to the 1970 comedy Getting Straight starring Elliott Gould and Candice Bergen. The film follows a student studying to be a teacher who dates a student protest leader and must decide his beliefs.

"Guilty Conscience" shares a theme of listening to one's heart. Dr. Dre and Eminem play the good and evil sides of three people debating whether to commit crimes.

Harlene Stein, the 70-year-old widow of Ronald Stein, actually sued Eminem and Dr. Dre for using her late husband's song without permission.

Eminem's liner notes mentioned the song title but did not credit Ronald Stein as composer, so his widow got no royalties for its use.