Eminem brought fans back to his 1996 ‘Infinite’ debut LP — and tricked them into thinking its sequel was imminent
ETIENNE LAURENT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Eminem delivers a speech as 50 Cent is honored at Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood, California on Jan. 30, 2020.
Eminem is “not afraid” to tease his fans.
On Monday, the “Without Me” rapper, 51, shared an Instagram Reel where he pulled a prank on fans by teasing a surprise album drop — though it didn’t actually arrive.
The teaser features a flurry of social media comments like “Drop the album grandpa” and “Dear Slim drop the f—ing album,” before it pans to a Wikipedia page to where an unannounced album for 2024 is shown. Then, an explosion simulates on-screen to reveal Eminem in an space suit with “Infinite” emblazoned on it.
The end of the video reveals an album cover for an LP titled “even more…Infinite,” a riff on the hip-hop artist’s 1996 debut album, Infinite. “Out Now💥🔥♾️,” Eminem captioned the post.
Fans of the musician were nearly fooled in the comments section. “This man can’t play with my emotions like this,” wrote a fan.
One user commented, “I am unwell. Em’s got jokes,” while another wrote, “Even his jokes are legendary.”
Related: Eminem Will Release His 12th Album ‘This Year,’ Dr. Dre Reveals: ‘It’s Fire’
Eminem’s prank wasn’t entirely out of left field. In March, Dr. Dre appeared on an episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! and revealed Eminem’s 12th studio album is currently in the works and will be released “this year.”
“Let me tell you something, let me explain something to you right now — Eminem is working on his own album which is coming out this year,” said the Beats Electronics co-founder, 59. “And I actually talked to him, and he said it’s OK for me to make that announcement right here on this show.”
Dre continued: “So, he has an album coming out — I’ve got songs on it, and it’s fire. I’m actually gonna hear the entire album for the first time for tomorrow.”
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Although the Death Row Records co-founder collaborated with the 8 Mile star on the project, he said he wasn’t entirely sure what the final project would sound like.
“[Eminem] holds his music close to his chest, so I haven’t even heard everything,” said Dre. “I haven’t even heard everything complete that I’ve done, but I’m gonna hear it, and he’s putting out an album this year.”
Eminem released his last full-length studio album Music to Be Murdered By in 2020, which featured the Juice Wrld-assisted hit “Godzilla,” which peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The same year, he followed up the project with Music to Be Murdered By – Side B and shared his greatest hits album Curtain Call 2 in 2022.
For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!
Read the original article on People.
