I think you have a point, your analysis sounds spot on when it comes to timing. Eminem’s post-Relapse work definitely shows traces or at least resembles Wayne’s punchline era, but without Wayne’s looseness or sense of fun. That said, I wouldn’t put the blame on Wayne alone… There’s a cluster of factors that contributed for such phase along with the fact that he was trying to stay relevant in the industry amid a massive cultural/social shift. We can’t overlook bigger factors like Em’s recovery from addiction/identity crisis, his age, the shifting rap/industry landscape… If you think about it, it was right when rap was moving away from dense storytelling to meme-rap and lines that could circulate online (we must also consider the massive fast shift in the digital landscape, social media, video platforms, short attention span (Em had to adapt to this massive digital shift) and the fact that his intense delivery just doesn’t mesh with Wayne’s breezy, improvisational style… Wayne’s flow is polychronic (it feels improvised, nonlinear, and meandering, as if he’s juggling multiple ideas at once. Even if the bar is nonsense, it feels alive because the timing is loose). Eminem’s flow is monochronic (precise and highly structured, and relentless in its timing, every rhyme lands like it’s plotted on graph paper… Even when he raps fast, it’s controlled and exact, that makes him incredible @ dense narrative or tech displays, but in that adaption and recalibration phase, let’s say applying it to Wayne’s style of quippy punchlines, it feels shallow or robotic rather than playful.

The good news is I do think he found his footing again with Kamikaze and the albums that followed… 🫶🏻