At first I was going to snark about how Eminem seems kind of boring now that he’s sober, and then I was going to joke about his friendship with Elton John. But now that I’ve read Eminem’s full interview in the New York Times, I just can’t. He sounds… nice. Humbled. Authentic. Real. The interviewer just asks him a series of questions that aren’t necessarily hard-hitting, but still personal, and Eminim could have easily obfuscated and denied, but he just answers everything methodically, almost as if he doesn’t really care how he sounds. He’s cool with gay marriage, and he says that his misogynistic lyrics were what he “was feeling at the time.” He also claims to have never read poetry and that he’s not “book-smart.” He seems pretty smart to me:

On your new album, “Recovery,” which comes out on Monday, you assume a confessional tone and back off from the misogyny and demented violence you pushed in your earlier work. Would you agree?
I think I’d have to go back and listen to it. Did I?

Does Slim Shady, your raping and killing alter ego, still exist? Or have you split with him?
Shady still exists. But I don’t think the subjects on this record call for, you know, bring the chainsaws and axes out and murder everyone on this record. There was so much stuff like that off the last record that I felt like I was starting to run it into the ground. I think consciously I went in a different direction with this record.

Do you regret having written so many songs that refer to women as “bitches” and “hos” who exist solely for your pleasure?
Anything I’ve ever said, I certainly was feeling at the time. But I think I’ve calmed down a bit. My overall look on things is a lot more mature than it used to be.

Even your mother sued you for defamation. Is she still in Detroit, where she raised you as a single mom?
I’m not sure, to be honest. It’d be very hard to repair that relationship.

You’ve been accused of writing gay-bashing lyrics in the past. Would you like to see gay marriage approved in Michigan, where you live?
I think if two people love each other, then what the hell? I think that everyone should have the chance to be equally miserable, if they want.

Is this the new, 37-year-old tolerant you?
It’s the new tolerant me!

Compared with other rappers, you are often praised for your complex rhyme schemes. Do you read poetry?
I don’t think I’ve ever read poetry, ever. I’m not really book-smart.

What does the title of your album refer to? What exactly are you recovering from?
Vicodin, Valium and Ambien, and toward the end, which caused my overdose, methadone. I didn’t know it was methadone. I used to get pills wherever I could.I was just taking anything that anybody was giving to me.

Where did you go to rehab?
The first time I went it was in Brighton, Mich. The second time I didn’t go to rehab. I just went to a regular hospital. I detoxed in the hospital, and then I came home. I couldn’t go back to rehab. I felt like I was Bugs Bunny in rehab.

What does that mean?
When Bugs Bunny walks into rehab, people are going to turn and look. People at rehab were stealing my hats and pens and notebooks and asking for autographs. I couldn’t concentrate on my problem.

Billboard magazine has ranked you as the best-selling artist of the past decade. What do you do with all your money?
Save it. I save a lot of money by not buying drugs anymore. I invest. I always try to be smart. I try to treat all the money I’m making like it’s the last time I’m going to make it.

Do you think rap has peaked creatively?
No. Hip-hop right now — there are certain artists who put hip-hop in a good state. There are a lot of talented people, and there’s a lot of young talent coming up, like B.o.B, Jay Electronica, Lupe Fiasco and Drake.

Why haven’t you planned any kind of big tour for your new album,other than two concerts with Jay-Z in September?
Touring is hard on the body.It used to be a big trigger for me with drinking and drugging.

How do you stay sober?
My kids, and also I see a rehab counselor once a week. I’ve been clean for two years.

Happy Father’s Day, by the way. As a divorced father of three daughters, are you a good dad?
Yes.My kids — I love them so much, and they’ve helped me through so many things.

I wonder what they’ll think of your rousing new song, “W.T.P.,” which stands for a white-trash party. You tell the listener, “Hop in my minivan/let’s get rowdy.” Just going back to my white-trash roots.

[From The New York Times]

Is anyone else surprised that he knows himself and his demons well enough to be scared that he might fall back into the same drug-abusing cycle on tour? I think that’s very smart of him, and if he’s still worried that he might relapse, why tour? Does he need the money? I doubt it. I bet the shows with Jay-Z will be good though.

CB pointed out this interview Em did with CNN – they got him to talk even more about his drug addiction and his overdose: “I was certainly a couple of hours away from death…[I] overdosed and almost died…I had to admit I had a problem. I had to do it for myself.” The full piece is here.

Header: Eminem on May 31, 2010. Credit: Fame Pictures.