Marshall Mathers, commonly referred to by his stage name Eminem, is an artist cemented in rap history as one of the G.O.A.T.’s (greatest of all time). Mathers released an album January 17 named “Music to be Murdered By.” The artist is known for employing gritty, controversial verses to relay his message, but listeners and PR specialists alike think the newest addition to the rapper’s long discography may have gone too far.
Reporter Sandra E. Garcia’s article in the music section of the New York Times, “Eminem Faces Backlash Over Lyrics About Deadly Attack at Ariana Grande Concert,” confirms the overall reception of the artist’s latest album. In the song, “Unaccommodating,” Mathers raps the following verse:
“I’m contemplating yelling ‘bombs away’ on the game
like I’m outside of an Ariana Grande concert waiting”
The verse alludes to the 2017 bombing attack at an Ariana Grande concert at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, United Kingdom. The attack was carried out by Salman Abedi, a suicide bomber who detonated explosives that were stuffed with bolts, nails and ball bearings.
According to the article, the mayor of Manchester, Andy Burnham, said the lyrics were “unnecessarily hurtful and deeply disrespectful to the families and all those affected.”
Interestingly enough, Garcia also reports that shortly following the 2017 attack, Eminem partnered with the British Red Cross to raise over $2 million for victims.
Following the backlash, Mathers posted an instagram photo on Jan. 23 explaining the meaning behind his album. Mathers writes:
“Certain selections have been designed to shock the conscience, which may cause positive action. Unfortunately, darkness has truly fallen upon us.”
In this instagram post, Mathers says that these instances are now commonplace, so “why not make a sport of it?” Clearly, Mathers and his public relations team are working to nip the controversy in the bud, but will it work?
Mathers’ lyrics have placed himself and his team in a sticky situation. On top of negative coverage by the media, fans, victims, and those emotionally affected by the bombing have been offended by the song. The recent attacks carried out by the United States and Iran against each other, too, have the public up in arms about unwarranted violence.
Personally, I do not think traditional mediums will work in Mathers case. The public is already tired of celebrities delivering casual apologies for offensive language (think Jeffree Star and Gina Rodriguez), and donating to the British Red Cross again, or boasting that he did before, will come off as trying to accommodate for making a mistake.
Although Mathers has already taken action to address the negativity surrounding his latest drop, I believe releasing a music video for the song “Unaccommodating” may have been the better option. In this music video, Mathers could have visually articulated his intention and avoided the typical “instagram apology” that so many celebrities have recently resorted to. The timing of this video would have been crucial, so I think he should have released the song with the video as a teaser before the official release of the album. In this way, listeners could have went listened to the album with the underlying message already in mind.