Eminem is Back and He's Not Afraid'

Eminem has returned to the spotlight last year after a five-year hiatus, when the rapper descended into a deep drug dependency and suffered from writer's block during his darkest days.

The project was rife with heavier fare about his personal demons and a fixation on serial killers, as he returned to his Slim Shady persona to spark creativity. (He recently said he put Slim Shady to bed momentarily for Recovery.)

A year later, however, much has changed, according to those close to the Detroit MC. Eminem released a project that represented a departure of sorts for the rapper. He collaborated with a bevy of producers (Just Blaze, DJ Khalil, Jim Jonsin, etc.) for the first time in his career and worked with high-profile pop stars (Pink, Rihanna), and rather than lead with a satirical first single, the project's first offering was the moving "Not Afraid."

"Very different than his usual 1st singles, but I like it," kevi-B wrote on MTV.com. Eminem's "Not Afraid" has been the talk of blogs, message boards and social-media networks as the rapper detoured from his normal route of celebrity-bashing numbers and instead delivered an honest take on his life and career.