"I'm not afraid to take a stand / Everybody, come take my hand..."
But the real dagger was the live version of "Talkin’ 2 Myself." The studio cut was a confession about disappointing fans. But this live recording, from a small club in Detroit, was a church service. You could hear the crowd’s silence. You could hear Marshall Mathers’ voice crack. "I just wanted to apologize for the last album... I wasn't myself." Eminem Recovery -iTunes Deluxe Edition--2010
That was the part the radio edited out. The selfishness of survival. You don't get sober for your mom, your girl, or your boss. You do it for the guy in the mirror. "I'm not afraid to take a stand /
" Cold wind blows... over your grave... " You could hear Marshall Mathers’ voice crack
He did one small thing.
He plugged in his white Apple earbuds—the original ones with the terrible, flimsy rubber—and pressed play.