A representative for Eminem has given an update on the rapper’s tapes that were recently reported to have been destroyed in a 2008 fire.

A host of master recordings from acts including Hole, Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails, Aretha Franklin, Beck, and more were ruined in a blaze at Universal Studios in Hollywood, but were not reported until earlier this week.

Dennis Dennehy, a spokesperson for Eminem, has since explained that while the master tapes could have been destroyed in the fire, the recordings may not have been lost entirely. “I’m fairly confident that most, if not all, of the masters are backed up,” he told the Detroit Free Press.


Joel Martin, the manager of Eminem’s ex-production team the Bass Brothers, added: “They was some type of effort underway to get all of the master tapes into one place.” The backed-up recordings include ‘The Marshall Mathers LP’, ‘The Eminem Show’, and ‘Lose Yourself’.

Neither Martin or Dennehy could confirm the masters had been destroyed, with the former saying he was “not sure where [Universal] kept them.”

Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic responded to the news of the fire on Twitter after a fan asked him about the likelihood of the master recordings of ‘Nevermind’ being destroyed. “I think they are gone forever,” he replied.

R.E.M., meanwhile, issued a statement on social media, saying there were “trying to get good information to find out what happened and the effect on the band’s music, if any.” “We will detail further as and when,” they promised.

According to reports, 118,230 “assets”, including unheard material, were destroyed in the fire, which raged through the film lot for almost 24 hours on June 1. 2008, and also damaged sets from films like Back To The Future.