(PCM) Love him or hate him, there is no denying that Eminem is a true rap legend. He turned the genre upside down when he first blasted onto the scene and has since become a name that is synonymous with both raw talent and controversy. Eminem is never afraid to push boundaries and his satirical, tongue-in-cheek social commentary resonated with fans and quickly skyrocketed him into the land of superstardom, whether he wanted it or not!
To add to his list of many accomplishments, Eminem can now say that he has had a new word successfully added to the Oxford English Dictionary. The man is a lyrical genius after all, so we can’t say this one is too very surprising. The word is :“Stan”, which is a word that made its’ first appearance as the title of a track on his third album “Marshall Mathers LP”. It has now officially become a word included in the Oxford English Dictionary. The official definition of the word which functions as a noun and a verb, according to the Oxford Dictionary is: “An overzealous or obsessive fan of a particular celebrity” or “Be an overzealous or obsessive fan of a particular celebrity.”
And here all this time we thought “Stan” was just someones name! The Oxford English Dictionary gives an example of how to properly use the word “Stan” writing, “Y’all know I Stan for Katy Perry, so I was excited to see the artwork for her upcoming album.” According to ViralThread, “Stan” was first released in 2000, and is also famous for featuring British singer Dido. The track tells the tragic tale of a man named Stanley “Stan” Mitchell, who claims to be Eminem’s greatest fan. Stan writes a number of candid of letters to the rapper, and with each verse, he becomes gradually more unhinged and obsessive with him. When Eminem doesn’t reply to his mail, Stan becomes psychotic, and this culminates in him creating voice recording of himself driving his car into a lake along with his pregnant partner.
The word “Stan” has been used as a slang term for over-obsessed fans for quite some time now, however it was not recognized as a literary term until now! Congrats, Em!