Column: Shady’s back

Guess who’s back. Back Again. Shady’s back, tell your friends.

It is finally official, after the April 7 release of his new song and video “We Made You,” Eminem has finally returned to the forefront of mainstream conversation.

The video itself follows along the same lines as previous Eminem first singles (“My Name Is,” “The Real Slim Shady”), in the form of parodies and taking shots at fellow celebrities.

The video shows Eminem returning to his older version of his Slim Shady persona, except this time around Eminem has left behind his bleach blonde hair look, which could just be interpreted as Eminem getting up there in age.

Once again, the list of star-studded targets is long with the main subjects varying from Sarah Palin to Jessica Simpson.

The list of butchered personalities include Bret Michaels, Britney Spears, Kim Kardashian, Lindsay Lohan, Ellen Degeneres, John Mayer, Tony Romo, Jessica Alba and Amy Winehouse.

If that isn’t enough to get you interested, little spoofs of Star Trek and Rain Man are also featured with a quick appearance of fellow rapper 50 Cent.

All of this is perfectly packaged into a four-minute and 39-second video of quick sketches that depict all of your favorite celebrities in hilarious situations.

The video is directed by Joseph Kahn, who is familiar with the way Eminem deploys his first singles considering that he was the director of Eminem’s “Without Me” video.

Skits of Eminem showing celebrities in hilarious situations highlight the video itself.

The opening scene sets the stage for the video as Eminem dresses like Bret Michaels and has a line-up of female celebrities.

In one scene, Eminem dresses up like Bret Michaels and depicts him as losing his hair. In another, Eminem is locking lips with an extremely ghostly looking Amy Winehouse impersonator.

Other scenes include a chunky version of Jessica Simpson hiking a cheeseburger to Tony Romo, as well as an interesting Star Trek battle where Eminem plays the role of Spock.

It’s good to see that Eminem is once again up to his old tricks, especially with the overall theme of the video.

In the bigger picture, Eminem is taking an interesting shot at tabloid culture during a time when every movement made by a celebrity is being analyzed to the tiniest of degrees.

The rest of the upcoming album, “Relapse,” should feature more serious content and songs, considering Eminem has gone through some rather serious situations during his musical hiatus.

Last year, Eminem’s best friend, “Proof,” was shot and killed outside of a Detroit nightclub, as well as Eminem going through another divorce from Kim.

Despite these issues, it appears that Eminem has returned to claim his spot on the top of the rap pedestal.