Released: May 23, 2000

Songwriter: Dr. Dre Eminem Mel-Man Mike Elizondo

Producer: Mel-Man Dr. Dre

[Intro]
(I never knew I, knew I, knew I'd)
(I never knew I, knew I, knew I'd) Mic check, one-two
(I never knew I, knew I, knew I'd) Who woulda knew?
(I never knew I, knew I, knew I'd) Who woulda known?
(I never knew I, knew I, knew I'd) Fuck woulda thought?
(I never knew I, knew I, knew I'd) Motherfucker comes out
(I never knew I, knew I, knew I'd) Sells a couple of million records
(I never knew I, knew I, knew I'd) And these motherfuckers hit the ceiling
(I never knew I'd)

[Verse 1]
I don't do black music, I don't do white music (No)
I make fight music for high school kids
I put lives at risk when I drive like this
I put wives at risk with a knife like this
Shit, you probably think I'm in your tape deck now
I'm in the back seat of your truck with duct tape stretched out
Ducked the fuck way down, waitin' to straight jump out
Put it over your mouth, and grab you by the face — what now?
Oh, you want me to watch my mouth
How? Take my fuckin' eyeballs out and turn them around?
Look, I'll burn your fuckin' house down, circle around
And hit the hydrant, so you can't put your burnin' furniture out
I'm sorry, there must be a mix-up
You want me to fix up lyrics
While our President gets his dick sucked?
Fuck that! Take drugs, rape sluts
Make fun of gay clubs, men who wear make-up
Get aware, wake up, get a sense of humor
Quit tryin' to censor music
This is for your kid's amusement (the kids!)
But don't blame me when little Eric jumps off of the terrace
You shoulda been watchin' him, apparently you ain't parents

[Chorus]
‘Cause I never knew I, knew I would get this big
I never knew I, knew I'd affect this kid
I never knew I'd get him to slit his wrist
I never knew I'd get him to hit this bitch
I never knew I, knew I would get this big
I never knew I, knew I'd affect this kid
I never knew I'd get him to slit his wrist
I never knew I'd get him to hit this bitch

[Verse 2]
So who's bringin' the guns in this country? (Hm?)
I couldn't sneak a plastic pellet gun
Through customs over in London
And last week I seen this Schwarzenegger movie
Where he's shootin' all sorts of these motherfuckers with an Uzi
I see these three little kids up in the front row
Screaming, "Go!" with their seventeen-year-old uncle
I'm like, guidance?!
Ain't they got the same moms and dads
Who got mad when I asked if they liked violence?
And told me that my tape taught 'em to swear?
What about the make-up
You allow your twelve-year-old daughter to wear? (Hm?)
So tell me that your son doesn't know any cuss words
When his bus driver's screamin' at him, fuckin' him up worse
(Go sit the fuck down, you little fucking prick!)
And "fuck" was the first word I ever learned
Up in the third grade, flippin' the gym teacher the bird (Look!)
So read up 'bout how I used to get beat up
Peed on, be on free lunch
And changed school every three months
My life's like kind of what my wife's like (What?)
Fucked up after I beat her fuckin' ass every night: Ike
So how much easier would life be
If nineteen million motherfuckers grew to be just like me?

[Chorus]
‘Cause I never knew I, knew I would get this big
I never knew I, knew I'd affect this kid
I never knew I'd get him to slit his wrist
I never knew I'd get him to hit this bitch
I never knew I, knew I would get this big
I never knew I, knew I'd affect this kid
I never knew I'd get him to slit his wrist
I never knew I'd get him to hit this bitch

[Verse 3]
I never knew I, knew I'd have a new house or a new car
A couple years ago I was more poorer than you are
I don't got that bad of a mouth, do I?
Fuck! Shit! Ass! Bitch! Cunt! Shooby-de-doo-wop! (Oops)
Skibbedy-be-bop, a Christopher Reeves
Sonny Bono, skis, horses and hittin' some trees (Hey)
How many retards'll listen to me
And run up in the school shootin' when they're pissed at a tea-
-cher? Her? Him? Is it you? Is it them?
"Wasn't me, Slim Shady said to do it again!"
Damn, how much damage can you do with a pen?
Man, I'm just as fucked up as you woulda been
If you woulda been in my shoes, who woulda thought
Slim Shady would be somethin' that you woulda bought?
That woulda made you get a gun and shoot at a cop
I just said it, I ain't know if you'd do it or not

[Chorus]
‘Cause I never knew I, knew I would get this big
I never knew I, knew I'd affect this kid
I never knew I'd get him to slit his wrist
I never knew I'd get him to hit this bitch
I never knew I, knew I would get this big
I never knew I, knew I'd affect this kid
I never knew I'd get him to slit his wrist
I never knew I'd get him to hit this bitch

[Outro]
How the fuck was I supposed to know?

Eminem

A legendary hip-hop icon who started as an underground battle rapper in Detroit, Marshall “Eminem” Bruce Mathers III (1972 – present) has developed a career full of controversy, wild swings, and some of the most noteworthy raps in the history of the genre.

Eminem has broken countless barriers, shifting and impacting the culture in several ways. In June 2017, “Stan” was added into the Oxford Dictionary, and in 2019, to the Merriam-Webster dictionary. He was the first rapper to win the Grammy Award for Best Album for three consecutive albums. “Rap God” set the Guinness World Record for most words in a song. He was also the first rapper to win an Oscar. His albums The Marshall Mathers LP and The Eminem Show became certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2011, making him one of the few artists to have more than one Diamond album. This has helped him become the highest selling hip-hop artist of all time. In January 2020, with his 11th studio album Music to Be Murdered By debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200, Eminem became the first artist in history to have 10 consecutive #1 debuts.

Produced and co-signed by Dr. Dre, Em had an unprecedented run of success from 1999 up until 2003, releasing three well-reviewed multi-platinum albums, stealing the show on countless collaborations, and even starred in a hit movie. However, it all came crashing down around 2004, when a string of problems ranging from drug dependence to depression to the tragic death of best friend Deshaun “Proof” Holton in 2006 led to a long hiatus from music and a pair of what were, by his own admission, sub-par albums.