Before Eminem produced “Renegade” for Jay-Z’s classic 2001 album The Blueprint, the track originally featured Royce Da 5’9”. On Wedneseday's (May18) “RapFix Live” Eminem explained to Sway how the song went from a Bad Meets Evil track into the hands of Jigga Man.
“That record was actually made—we were starting to make that record. It was a situation where Jay had called me and I had another record that I wanted to present to him,” Eminem explains to Sway.
Eminem, who appeared vocally and produced the track had trouble getting the beat he intended for Jay on time in the pre-Pro Tools era. “At the time we were recording on two-inch reels. What happened was there was a beat that I had an idea for me and Jay to do a song together. And the reel with the beat on it was in L.A., I was in Detroit and Jay was on a deadline.”
With no way to get Hov the track, Slim Shady resorted to a plan B and presented “Renegade.”
“I kinda approached Jay like, ‘Yo what about this record? I already have this, it’s already here.’ And he was working a deadline; he was working on a real short window of time to get it done, so that was kinda how that record came about.”
After getting the track from Em, Jay slid his vocals in the place of Royce’s bars and in between Eminem’s already pre-existing rhymes. “I actually sent him the track and he put his verses on there and sent it back and I mixed it.”
