Em's ideas and opinions are 'worth more than I can pay for,' Alabama MC tells MTV News.
By Rob Markman
<P>It's been a long road for <a href="http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/yelawolf/artist.jhtml">Yelawolf</a>, but on November 21, the Gadsden, Alabama, MC will finally release his official debut album,<i>Radioactive.</i> </P><P> </P><P></p><div class="player-placeholder right" title="Yelawolf Talks About Working With Eminem" id="vid:705816" width="240" height="211"></div><p> </P><P> </P><P>The Southern rapper first signed to Columbia Records in 2007, but never got to release his LP. After that deal fizzled out, Yela hit the mixtape scene and became one of rap's most anticipated newcomers, eventually linking up with <a href="/news/articles/1655811/eminem-signs-slaughterhouse-yelawolf-to-shady-records.jhtml">Eminem's Shady Records</a>. For Yelawolf, <a href="http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/eminem/artist.jhtml">Eminem</a>'s input during the making of <i>Radioactive</i> was priceless. </P><P> </P><P>"His ideas and his opinions are worth a lot," Wolf told MTV News on Tuesday. "Artistically, it's worth more than I can pay for — for him to even say what he thinks about a record." </P><P> </P><P>In February, <a href="/news/articles/1658641/yelawolf-eminem-label.jhtml">Yelawolf talked</a> with us about the significance of being signed to Shady and working with Eminem. "I mean, it's a huge deal being able to have a mentor who's done this for so long and [has] been through so much," Wolf said. "Also, artistically, [he just pushes] me to be better. Being around them dudes will make you better naturally. So we're excited, man." </P><P> </P><P>Yelawolf also told us this week that Em was present every step of the way during the making of the album. The first official single, "Hard White (Up in the Club)," features Lil Jon and it's the perfect mix of crunk and rowdy rock. Many of the album's tracks mark a departure in sound from what fans would expect to hear on a Slim Shady record. Even the one record that Yela's boss appears on, the hyped-up "Throw It Up" with <a href="http://www.mtv.com/videos/news/705533/gangsta-boo-addresses-her-split-with-three-6-mafia.jhtml#id=1673157">Three 6 Mafia co-founder Gangsta Boo</a>, is sonically different from anything that has appeared on Eminem's <i>Relapse</i> or the Grammy Award-winning multiplatinum <i>Recovery.</i> </P><P> </P><P>Still, Yela insists that the living rap legend's value stretches further than a single appearance. "I've been in the studio with him when I was writing a couple of records for this. He mixed, he did arrangements, he was fully involved," he said. </P><P> </P><P>Yelawolf wraps up his Hard White Tour on Friday in Las Vegas. </P><P> </P><P><i>Are you looking forward to Yela's debut album? Tell us in the comments!</i></p>
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