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And Finally Artist News
Eminem asks fans to “listen more closely” to offensive lyrics
By Andy Malt | Published on Friday 24 January 2020
If you don’t like the lyrics on Eminem’s new album, you can fuck off. Yeah, I said a bad word. What are you going to do about it? Fuck off, that’s what. Or stick around and see if me telling you to fuck off actually has a positive effect on you. Now read all that back, but make it about Eminem comparing himself to the Manchester Arena bomber.
Eminem, as you well know, released his latest album, ‘Music To Be Murdered By’, last week. As is the norm, the lyrics came in for much scrutiny for their often offensive nature, in particular a line where he compares himself to the suicide bomber who attacked an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester in 2017.
Many said that, even for Eminem, this was a step too far. But he counters that he’s trying to say something with the album that you missed because you’re so keen to be offended.
“In today’s wonderful world, murder has become so commonplace that we are a society obsessed and fascinated by it”, he writes in a post on Instagram. “I thought, why not make a sport of it and murder over beats? So, before you jump the gun, allow me to explain”.
Assuming no guns have been jumped, he continues: “This album was not made for the squeamish. If you’re easily offended or unnerved at the screams of bloody murder, this may not be the collection for you. Certain selections have been designed to shock the conscience, which may cause positive action. Unfortunately, darkness has truly fallen upon us”.
This is seemingly a reference to album track ‘Darkness’, the video for which re-enacts the Route 91 Harvest festival mass shooting in Las Vegas, while also trying to make a serious point about gun control.
However, he concludes, the ‘murder’ in the album’s title can be interpreted in different ways. “So, you see, murder in this instance isn’t always literal, nor pleasant”, he says. “These bars are only meant for the sharpest knives in the drawer. For the victims of this album, may you rest peacefully. For the rest of you, please listen more closely next time”.
