Update:

Eminem's new album was scheduled to release on November 17th. Unfortunately, the release date came and went but according to HipHopDX, Revival will hit the shelves on December 8.

Are you excited about the new album?

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Many fans who had anticipated a surprise drop by Eminem expressed their woes on social media upon coming to the realization that they were let down despite growing hype about the highly anticipated album, on Friday, November 17. But as the hours ticked by, a photograph of the prospective cover art and a tracklist alleged to be official began to trend; giving fans reason to believe they will not have to wait much longer for the rap great's 9th studio installment.

Musicians often allow their album covers to tell stories, and in lining up the artwork of some particular artists, it isn't uncommon for the progression of a theme to reveal itself. Such was the case with Nas' transition from a boy, to a man, to a king, and then a prophet on the front of "Illmatic," then "It Was Written," then "I Am," then "Nastradamus," respectively. And such has been the case for Eminem, to a degree. While there's really no linear succession to the thematics of his covers, certain motifs have appeared in the art over the years.

The "Marshall Mathers LP" found Em sitting on the porch of the home he was reared in, then on his very next album "The Eminem Show" he is sitting in the very same position, only, he is on a stage. "Encore" would follow with Em bowing on that stage, so as to say goodbye to the caricature he gave fans for a time. Then he veered towards airing more personal demons on "Relapse," which consumers received in a sleeve bearing a portrait of his face pieced together by a heap of pills. The "Recovery" project then came along to give off the impression of a sobering Em, with him walking off on a long empty road. Finally, there was the "Marshall Mathers LP 2," which brought back the visual from the first MMLP disc, only, the house behind him was boarded up.

The cover for Em's upcoming "Revival" opus is of a tree and field of tall grass. It would be impossible to give an accurate breakdown of what the visual represents without first listening to the music. But based off of the arc of his career and his most recent work, one might project that Em will come to peace with a few issues his day-one fans have wrestled with as they've grown along with him.

The "Revival" tracklist reads as follows:

Welcome (Intro)
Stories
Voices feat. Rihanna,
Iconic
Reasons
Expenses feat. 2 Chainz
Fury
Methods and Madness feat. Skylar Grey
Psychotic
Falling
Wealth feat. Kendrick Lamar
Letters To You
Prisoner
Weak
Figure of Speech
You and I
Treasure