It’s been a year since Eminem’s last album, “The Marshall Mathers LP 2,” was released. It’s been 10 years, however, since his last well-received album, “Encore,” dropped, and eight years since his label, Shady Records, issued a collaborative release, titled “Eminem Presents: The Re-Up.”

In 2006, Shady Records signed Eminem, D12, 50 Cent, Obie Trice, Stat Quo, Bobby Creekwater and Cashis — all of whom are featured on “The Re-Up.” Lloyd Banks, Akon and Nate Dogg made guest appearances. Not surprising given the variety of talent, the album went platinum.

Fast forward to 2014. Gone are 50 Cent, Obie Trice, Status Quo, Bobby Creekwater and Cashis. Granted, their music is not as relevant as it once was, but these artists delivered. 50 Cent’s four albums under Shady went gold, platinum, 5x platinum, and 8x platinum.

But Shady's current acts — D12, Slaughterhouse, Yelawolf, Bad Meets Evil and, of course, producer Eminem — can't hope to live up to this level of success. D12 has not released music since 2004 and is largely known for filling space until Eminem’s next verse. Yelawolf, whose outlandish lyrics give the impression he can’t take his own career seriously, has not and never will come close to a gold release.

That said, few were anticipating platinum material with “Shady XV.”

The effort is primarily an Eminem album. There are five songs entirely his and an additional four in which he is featured. All in all, the first 12-track CD of “Shady XV” has brought the demise of the highest-grossing rapper to light.

This is not a new phenomenon. The last decade has seen a huge shift in Eminem’s music. What once were honest, hard-hitting lyrics have turned into aggressive, near-constant shouts which aimlessly insult celebrities with occasional rhyme scheme. In a freestyle at the BET Awards, Eminem threatened to punch Lana Del Rey. Similarly, on the album’s “Vegas,” he threatens to rape Iggy Azalea.

Ironically, Eminem seems to be painfully aware his offensiveness does not make up for the lack of groundbreaking music he once produced. In “Guts Over Fear,” he confesses: "There's no more emotion for me to pull from/ Just a bunch of playful songs that I made for fun/ So, to the break of dawn, here I go, recycling the same old song." And for the most part, it’s what happens here.

Furthermore, in the opening track of the album, “ShadyXV,” he openly makes fun of himself saying: “A martyr on a private charter, whose life could be harder?” But as the album continues, all semblance of self-awareness is lost with empty, vain lyrics about status, wealth and degrading women. Take “Bane” by D12, for example: “On another tax bracket and I been cleanin’ my house/ But my old habits are in the attic, I’ll pull ‘em out.” We’ve never heard anything like that before, have we?

The routine is so boring, in fact, that some of the most energetic moments on the album come from featured artists Big Sean and Danny Brown on “Detroit vs. Everybody.” Their verses are clever, enthusiastic and memorable, but not much can be said for any of those by the Shady Records acts.

And then there is the second disc, which greatly outshines any recent releases — it’s a greatest hits compilation. Obie Trice and 50 Cent’s tracks are a not-so-subtle reminder of both “what used to be” and “what could have been;” Dr. Dre’s production, if not missed before, certainly is after hearing “The Setup” and “Wanna Know” once again.

If “Shady XV” is any indication of the direction of Shady Records, then 50 Cent, Obie Trice, Status Quo, Bobby Creekwater and Cashis should be praised for their business strategy just as much as for their talent.

While Eminem solo records have a chance at financial success (because at the end of the day, he is still Eminem), compilations like this one showcase a concerning lack of innovation for the label. It wouldn’t be surprising if this were the second and last Shady Records “various artists” LP. As Eminem so candidly told us in “Guts Over Fear,” he doesn’t have much left to say.