Eminem’s Rare "Infinite" Pressing From 1996 Heads To Auction

A piece of Eminem’s Detroit history that spent nearly three decades outside the collector market is finally up for grabs. An original 1996 pressing of his debut album, Infinite, is among several early-career records and tapes being auctioned by Wax Poetics, with some of the material dating back to before the rapper adopted the name that eventually made him famous.

The Infinite LP comes with particularly unusual provenance. According to the Wax Poetics auction listing, Detroit DJ Babe received the record directly from Eminem after watching him compete at the city’s famed Hip Hop Shop in 1996. Babe recalled being encouraged by DJ Los to come see an unknown white rapper who had been making noise at the weekly battles. Eminem won that day and later approached Babe with a copy of his record.

The vinyl apparently spent the years that followed tucked away rather than circulating among collectors. Wax Poetics says the copy has remained with the same owner since 1996 and has never previously been offered on the open market. That history makes the record more than another early Eminem pressing. Infinite was independently released through F.B.T. Productions before Dr. Dre, Aftermath Entertainment, or the Slim Shady persona transformed Eminem’s career. The auction copy carries the original WEB714V catalog number and includes tracks such as “313,” “Open Mic,” and “Jealousy Woes II.”

The sale reaches even further back than Infinite. A sealed 1995 cassette from Soul Intent features “F#@!in’ Backstabber” and “Biterphobia,” recorded while Marshall Mathers was still performing under the name M&M.

According to Wax Poetics, the cassette was Soul Intent’s only commercial release and includes an appearance from the late Proof. The tape remains sealed and received a grade of nine from Audio Media Grading earlier this year.

Collectors can also bid on a sealed promotional cassette created ahead of The Slim Shady LP. The 1998 sampler was mixed and presented by Stretch Armstrong and distributed to radio, press, and retailers before Eminem’s major-label debut arrived in February 1999. Rather than contain the complete album, the tape combines snippets of songs including “My Name Is,” “Brain Damage,” and “Guilty Conscience” with skits.

Also included is a nine-volume run of DJ Babe’s The 7 Mile Album mixtape series. The collection features early or exclusive material from Eminem and other Detroit fixtures including Royce Da 5’9”, Proof, and Obie Trice, along with music from 50 Cent and other artists from the era. Wax Poetics says the tapes come from Babe’s own retained archive rather than the secondary market.

The auction also includes sealed first pressings of The Slim Shady LP and The Marshall Mathers LP, extending the collection from Eminem’s independent Detroit years into the period when his records began reaching millions of listeners.

Bidding remains open through Thursday, October 8. The biggest draw for collectors may be the chance to own artifacts from a version of Eminem’s career that existed before the global fame, including material that reportedly came straight from his hands in Detroit nearly 30 years ago.