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Eminem is constantly viewed as gay bashing. Some people automatically refer to him as Eminem, “the homophobic rapper’. He frequently uses the word ‘faggot’ in his lyrics, but with a total different meaning. The general meaning of ‘faggot’ in Eminem’s lyrics is rather ‘coward’ than anything else.
A few lines from the song ‘Criminal’ have raised a lot of controversy, particularly among people from the GLAAD ( Gay and Lesbian Alliance against Defamation):

“My words are like a dagger with a jagged edge
That’ll stab you in the head
Whether you’re a fag or lez
Or the homosex, hermaph, or a trans-a-vest
Pants or dress’hate fags? The answer’s ‘yes'”

The problem is the same each time. At first sight, those lines seem as aggressive and as gay bashing as possible. Sure, those lines have been taken out of their context! Let’s have a deeper look at the song ‘Criminal’. Later on, Eminem says:
‘C’mon Relax Guy I Like Gay Men
Right Ken Give Me An Amen Aaa Men’
You will clearly understand that Eminem is joking (if you got a sense of humor, of course!). The whole ‘Criminal’ song is total sarcasm. Look at the chorus:
I’m A Criminal
Cuz Every Time I Write A Rhyme These People Think It’s A Crime
To Tell Em What’s On My Mind I Guess I’m A Criminal
But I Don’t Gotta Say A Word I Just Flip Em The Bird
And Keep Goin I Don’t Take Shit From No One
Eminem is just playing with people’s mind. He knows in advance what to expect from conservative politicians and he’s amused ‘in advance- about their reaction. Eminem is by no means an homophobe. All he wants is to play with people’s heads in order to make them mad:
‘ You Motherfuckin Chickens Ain’t Brave Enough
To Say The Stuff I Say So This Tape Is Shut
Shit Half The Shit I Say I Just Make It Up
To Make You Mad So Kiss My White Naked Ass
And If It’s Not A Rapper That I Make It As
Bi’ma Be A Fuckin Rapist In A Jason Mask’
But the fact that Eminem plays with irony is obvious since the beginning of the song. That’s why those accusations of homophobia sound so ridiculous:
“A Lot Of People Ask Me Stupid Fuckin Questions
A Lot Of People Think That What I Say On Records
Or What I Talk About On A Record That I Actually Do In Real Life
Or That I Believe In It
Or If I Say That I Wanna Kill Somebody That
I’m Actually Gonna Do It
Or That I Believe In It
Well Shit If You Believe That
Then I’ll Kill You
You Know Why
Cuz I’m A
Criminal
Criminal
You God Damn Right
I’m A Criminal
Yeah I’m A Criminal”
It is more than obvious that he doesn’t intend to kill anybody in real life. If that point is so obvious, it is very clear that he won’t stab nor harm gay people in real life.
I think conservative people are more likely to misinterpret those lyrics than young people who usually got that sense of humor Eminem expects from them.
Gay people are not the only target of the song. Eminem also jokes about the Lewinsky affair. He talks about preachers’ abusive behavior and about his mom’s drug addiction. ‘Criminal’ is just a crazy song that is intended to make you smile, because you know the author is joking. I’d like to ask people who seriously think Eminem expresses his hatred of gay people, if they also believe he will kill his producer and spray his brain all over the place? Don’t you think it’s ridiculous to believe his statements are serious?
‘Replacin The Doctor Cause Dre Couldn’t Make It Today
He’s A Little Under The Weather So I’m Takin His Place
Mm Mm Mmm Oh That’s Dre With An Ak To His Face
Don’t Make Me Kill Him Too And Spray His Brains All Over The Place
I Told You Dre You Should’ve Kept That Thang Put Away
I Guess That’ll Teach You Not To Let Me Play With It ‘
Eminem precisely explained his use of the word ‘faggot’ in his lyrics in an interview given to NY Rock:
NYROCK:
There has been much controversy over your liberal use of the word “faggot” and what people perceive as gay bashing. It’s put you right in the line of fire from gay and lesbian groups the world over…
EMINEM:
I’m not gay bashing. People just don’t understand where I come from. “Faggot” to me doesn’t necessarily mean gay people. “Faggot” to me just means… taking away your manhood. You’re a sissy. You’re a coward. Just like you might sit around in your living room and say, “Dude, stop, you’re being a fag, dude.”
NYROCK:
But you can see how it would insult homosexuals?
EMINEM:
Yeah, but it does not necessarily mean you’re being a gay person. It just means you’re being a fag. You’re being an asshole or whatever. That’s the way that the word was always taught to me. That’s how I learned the word. Battling with somebody, you do anything you can to strip their manhood away.
NYROCK:
Sometimes it seems that you enjoy creating a bit of ruckus. I wonder if “faggot” is really necessary …
EMINEM:
I come from Detroit where it’s rough and I’m not a smooth talker. I am who I am and I say what I think. I’m not putting a face on for the record. When I started saying “faggot” on record, I started getting people going, “You have something against gay people,” and I thought it was funny. Because I don’t; I really don’t. I have something against assholes, but I’m not into gay bashing. A lot of people are too stupid to understand it.
I’d like to add that a blatent homophobe would never have performed with Elton John and also that ‘Criminal’ has been written by in reaction to the accusation of being homophobic.
We should not forget that Eminem is not the first rapper to say ‘faggot’ in his lyrics…
When will people stop confusing hip hop with real life?

Unofficial EMINEM biographer ANTHONY BOZZA claims the foul-mouthed rapper spiraled “out of control” the moment he became a superstar.
In his book WHATEVER YOU SAY I AM: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF EMINEM, Bozza says the STAN rapper’s success led to him abusing alcohol and narcotics as he struggled to cope with the demands of international fame.
Bozza says, “He kind of spun out of control. I don’t think anyone would have been surprised if he had ended up dead or in jail.”
In an American TV interview, the author adds that on his first night out with the blond star, he witnessed a drug deal taking place.

There is one thing I particularly admire in Eminem’s artistic expression: his creative mastering of the English language. He’s a genius at work.
Since he began rapping, Eminem understood the power of words. Words can be strong weapons that will knock you right in the face. Words also have the power to make you laugh or cry.
Eminem’s style makes him unique in the world of hip hop.
Several lines of the ‘Love Me’ song from the 8 Mile soundtrack testify it very well:
‘There’s a certain mystique when I speak,
that you notice that it’s sorta unique,
cause you know it’s me, my poetry’s deep”’
His savant combination of syllables and the use of words that sound nearly the same make us feel the athmosphere of the song, whether it is stressful, funny, serious or sarcastic.
The combination of the [i] sound at the beginning of the 8 Mile song shows us that Rabbit is battling. You can feel the fight.
‘Sometimes I just feel like, quittin I still might
Why do I put up this fight, why do I still write
Sometimes it’s hard enough just dealin with real life
Sometimes I wanna jump on stage and just kill mics
And show these people what my level of skill’s like
But I’m still white, sometimes I just hate life
Somethin ain’t right, hit the brake lights
Case of the stage fright, drawin a blank like’
The listener will easily guess the doubts and the stress that surrounds Rabbit.
Rabbit wants to succeed, he knows he will have to fight hard.
The [i] sound words are so well choosen write/ life/mics/ white/ fright/ lights/ blank like
Rabbit knows that he cannot quit writing if he wants to succeed. Often he’s brought back to real life, to concrete problems, but he also has to face the stage battle and spit his words on the mic.
“I’m still white” sounds so sarcastic. Of course he is still white and he knows cannot change his skin color. He will have to face with his racial issue and fight even harder to reach his goal, knowing that he’s a white M.C.
Eminem exactly knows what kind of effects he wants to create in his songs. His art is poetry.
‘ Ayo, my pen and paper cause a chain reaction
To get your brain relaxin, cause they be actin maniac in action ‘
I particularly love the way those lines from the ‘ Infinite song ‘ from the Infinite album are composed. Can you imagine a pen and paper sheet having a chain reaction? It draws the picture of an inspired M.C whose brain is full of thoughts. His thoughts are so numerous that he cannot control the flooding of the words that he pendowns on his paper sheet. He writes so fast that the paper vanishes very fast.
‘ My rhyming skills got you climbing hills
I travel through your mind until you spine like siren drills ‘
The listener is being taken apart with a high level of rhymes. Eminem perfectly knows how to handle words. He also combines words that usually wouldn’t match. The listener will enjoy his wordplays if he pays attention to them. Eminem opens new universes of words, he uses his art to perfection.
With such a high level of skills, no wonder if he sometimes verbally kills.

Eminem’s ex, Kimberly Mathers, is a wanted woman.
Warrants for her arrest were issued after the former Mrs. Slim Shady was a no-show at two separate court dates, according to Detroit newspapers. Her attorney said Kimberly had not been heard from in a week.
Attorney Michael Smith said he last spoke to Kimberly on Oct. 30 and that “she was in great spirits.”
“Everyone is concerned,” Smith said, adding this was the longest his client had gone AWOL. “Nobody knows where she is.”
In the meantime, the rapper was awarded temporary custody of the couple’s seven-year-old daughter, Hailie Jade, according to his attorney.
“A decision was made by the court, Marshall was given full temporary custody of his daughter, Hailie,” Harvey Hauer told E! Online.
Eminem’s publicist would only say of the Mathers’ legal woes, “The order speaks for itself.”
Kimberly recently had a second daughter with another man. There has been no word on who has custody of that child.
On Thursday, after she failed to show up for an arraignment on charges of maintaining a drug den, 37th District Judge John Chmura issued a bench warrant for Kimberly’s arrest.
The charges stem from a Sept. 29 raid when cops in Warren, Michigan, answering a noise complaint, busted up a party at a hotel room she had rented where illegal substances were found.
It was the second arrest warrant issued for Mathers this week.
Mathers failed to appear at an arraignment on Tuesday for violating her bail conditions on a charge of cocaine possession. When Mathers’ attorney couldn’t reach his client, Circuit Court Judge Edward Servitto issued the bench warrant.
Mathers was busted on June 10 during a routine traffic stop after officers found less than 25 grams of cocaine.
After she failed to show for her first two pretrial hearings, Servitto ordered the 28-year-old placed under electronic house arrest.
Last month, a penitent Kimberly Mathers agreed to stay home, except to attend court appearances and counseling sessions, and to wear the electronic tether in order to avoid jail time.
Mathers may still be wearing the electronic tether says her attorney. But the device is only meant to notify authorities if she leaves home. It’s unable track her movements.

The former wife of Eminem is now a wanted woman.
Kim Mathers failed to appear for a preliminary hearing Thursday in Warren District Court to face possible charges in connection with a drug raid at a local hotel.
She is now a fugitive and two bench warrants have been issued for her arrest, Local 4 reported.
“Is Kimberly Ann Mathers in the courtroom?” Judge John Chmura said before issuing the bench warrants.
Mathers’ attorney said he and her family have not seen or heard from her since last Thursday.
“Her family and her children are praying for her. We are really concerned,” said Attorney Michael Smith.
There are two bench warrants out for Mathers since she didn’t show up for a hearing Tuesday, according to Local 4.
Mathers, 28, faces charges for a Sept. 29 party held in her Warren hotel room, according to police.
Acting on a report of a disorderly person, Warren officers spotted Mathers talking on a cellular phone outside her room at the Candlewood Suites shortly before 3 a.m., according to the Macomb Daily.
Police told the paper they heard yelling and loud music coming from inside. When she opened the door, officers saw several people inside, “several” open bottles of alcohol and cigarette rolling papers, according to a police report.
Mathers apparently told police the room was in her name and that people were using marijuana and Ecstasy at the party, the police report states.

‘Angry Blonde’ has been written by Eminem himself. This book contains most of Eminem’s lyrics from the Slim Shady Lp and the Marshall Mathers Lp, some Infinite album songs and some freestyles, a lot of pictures. Eminem also included some personal comments who will help the reader to understand the context in which each song was written.
Not only the fans, but also people who have a bad opinion about Eminem should take a look at it: it would certainly help them to do away with some stereotypes.
For those who still think Eminem actually wanted to kill Kim, they will learn that ‘Bonny and Clyde 97’ was created by Marshall to express his frustration about Kim trying to separate him from their daughter. They will also clearly understand that this song was a trick to get back at her for her to listen to the song.
People who know Eminem’s personality also know that he will make public your argument with him if you drive him mad. He is used to speaking his mind and he does it publicly.
It is funny to discover how Eminem and Dr Dre worked on ‘Guilty Conscience’ which was supposed to be called ‘Night ‘n’ Day’.
Some songs creation begin with a little joke, a little melody like ‘My Fault’ that it based on a joke about one of Eminem’s friends having a ‘bad trip’.
Sometimes Eminem gets his inspiration from negative events and stress around him. ‘The Way I Am’ is the expression of the whole stress he lets out of his chest. The words he spits in his songs are weapons against his enemies. ‘The Real Slim Shady’ is a good example, you can see how Christina Aguilera and Will Smith get dissed.
You will also have fun discovering Eminem’s collaboration with his fellows from D12. You will enter with pleasure in a world where music is a passion.
A book that is worth reading for each Eminem fan, but also for people who don’t know him and who want to investigate the mind of Slim Shady.

RAPPER Eminem has been helping Bolton pupils to get their environmental message across.
They have reinterpreted one of his songs for a new CD which tackles issues ranging from litter and graffiti to global warming.
The album features around 180 pupils from 14 primary schools and was the brainchild of Bolton Council’s youth and community environment worker Dave Shuttleworth.
The CD emerged from workshops he conducted with Year Five classes and is a mixture of cover versions of chart songs with their lyrics rewritten on an environmental theme, and new compositions.
There was one slight problem with playing Eminem, the world’s most popular rapper, in the classroom. Mr Shuttleworth said: “We had to bleep out some of the words before we let the kids listen to it in class.”
The album was recorded at Ionian Studios in Halliwell and Phoenix Studios in Bark Street with financial help from Bolton At Home, the organisation which manages the council’s housing stock, and the Government’s single regeneration budget.
Mr Shuttleworth said: “If you look how many programmes there are about being pop stars, it’s great for the kids to have a chance to go to a proper recording studio and see the mixing desk and other equipment.”
The CD will not go on sale but Mr Shuttleworth will encourage owners to “recycle” it by burning a copy onto a recordable CD and spreading the word.
“They love it, although they always get this half-embarrassed look on their faces when you play the recording back to them as if they can’t quite believe it’s them.
“The whole project is about taking something that’s quite difficult like the environmental message and associating it with something they like so they can see that it’s not boring.”
Musical styles on the album vary from rap to reggae and R ‘n’ B.
The full tracklisting for the album is:
1. The Power of Nature- Red Lane County Primary
2. One step closer- Red Lane County Primary
3. G-G-G-Graffiti- Crompton Fold
4. Beautiful- Crompton Fold
5. Captain Clean- Green Generation
6. Vandalism- Lever Edge County Primary
7. A place Where I Can Fly- Lever Edge County Primary
8. Extinction Blues- St. Columba’s Roman Catholic School
9. Why?- Castle Hill School
10. Been to the Year 3000 (and it was hot!)- Moorgate County Primary
11. Funky Planet- Green Generation
12. Don’t Drop The Can Baby!- Wally’s Youth Club
13. Messy- St. Andrews RC
14. Down in the Jungle- Top o’th’ Brow County Primary
15. Warraloadarubbish- Holy Infants Roman Catholic School
16. The Green Team Rock- Oldhams County Primary
17. Get the Low-down on the Ozone- Roscow Fold Guides
18. Keep Our Environment Clean!- Mean Green Team

EDINBURGH, Scotland (Reuters) — British singer Dido will be forever grateful to “Bad Boy” rapper Eminem for launching her on the road to stardom.
She was promoting her debut album “No Angel” across the United States in the spring of 2000 when a CD arrived in New York for her with a covering letter from one of the most controversial figures in American music.
Eminem’s decision to use the Dido song “Thankyou” in his ode to an obsessed fan “Stan” transformed her career. “It was a bolt from the blue when I got word of his interest,” she said. “Naively, I just didn’t predict the effect it would have on my career. I simply told a few mates, who also thought Eminem was cool, and then carried on promoting my album. But of course the eventual effect would be insane,” she told Reuters on Wednesday after rehearsing for her appearance at this year’s MTV Europe awards in Edinburgh.
“We both really enjoyed the song, enjoyed performing. Of course I am thankful to him,” she added.
Her critically acclaimed debut album went on to sell 12 million copies and establish her as an international star. Now she has no fears of suffering from what she calls “Difficult Second Album Syndrome.” “I was so excited to be back in the studio,” she said of the time writing the newly released album “Life for Rent.” “Being on tour for two years I was desperate to get down all these songs that were going around in my head and driving me crazy,” she said. “I got to be at home for a year and make music. I don’t know why you get a syndrome.”

By Quincey D.

The undisputed largest musical controversy of this summer swirled around the new release by the artist who fellow rapper Snoop Dogg has called the ‘Great White Hope’ of hip hop, Eminem. The Marshall Mathers LP became one of the fastest selling albums in hip hop history and as a consequence, scared the hell out of much of the conservative public.
It is so much easier to stick one’s head in the sand, but the beauty of hip hop has always been, in the much-repeated phrase, keeping it real. Eminem calls it like he sees it, from his bad upbringing, the bad parenting of others, poverty, personal isolation, class strata in this supposedly classless country, relations between the sexes and the often blatant hypocrisy of the music industry.
Speaking out on social ills is nothing new in music, but Eminem does it in a way many have never heard in hip hop before: satire.
Satire is a notoriously difficult medium in which to create because, in short, many people just may not get it. The effectiveness of satire comes from its ability to be realized as such, and the overwhelming critical and popular acclaim the album and the artist have received is an indication that a great many people do get it.
‘Eminem’s lyrics are seeped in sarcasm and riddled with irony,’ said Aaron Schultz, music director for WBUL, USF’s student-run radio station. ‘But (his detractors) take them at face value and don’t look deeper into what he is saying.’
An indication of the album’s satire is the use of characters, and on The Marshall Mathers LP Eminem takes on the roles of two characters for perhaps the album’s most controversial track, ‘Kim.’
‘Kim’ is a frighteningly powerful scenario that enacts a violent fight between a husband and wife, ultimately ending in the kidnapping and murder of the wife. The track is powerful not because it seems to glorify domestic violence, but because it is probably an internal dialogue or fantasy that is more common in men than society would like to think. The use of Eminem’s real name, Marshall, and that of his wife, Kim, further drives home the idea that this scenario is a common one that even the rapper has fantasized about.
It is to Eminem’s credit, in fact, that he is brave enough to present such a frightening fantasy to a society that would rather deny the existence of domestic abuse in reality or as a fantasy in the minds of some men.
One of the most significant things about the track is that Eminem also performs the part of the female. The performance is not mocking or derisive at all. Rather, it is a staggeringly real portrayal of a woman in an abusive situation.
The song is at the peak of its realism during a brief moment in which the abuser male drops his bravado and reveals the staggering insecurities that fuel the abuse. This touch of character motivation and the realism of the scene, coupled with Eminem’s sharp ear for dialogue, is what makes the track the opposite of everything its detractors say it is. It is not a glorification of domestic abuse, but rather a warning and powerfully real portrayal of what happens every day to dysfunctional couples.
Eminem has also been accused of homophobia by organizations such as the Gay and Lesbian Alliance against Defamation. It is true that Eminem uses the word f”t when describing gays, but in two of the instances he follows it up with a denial that he is homophobic.
The use of the slur is a broad topic in hip hop, almost as broad as the use of the word b’-h in hip hop to describe women. A master’s thesis in popular cultural studies might begin to address the implications and motivations behind the use of such language. But in a nutshell, hip hop has always been the music of survivors, be it survivors of the street or abuse in the home or society.
In a culture of survivalism, the merest hint of weakness is leapt upon, and in many cases the gender-implicit f- or b-word is used to deride that weakness. And in many instances, those words are used only to comment on weakness, not the sexual preference or gender. So in effect, the word is detached from its denotation and given a different connotation of ‘weak’ or ‘stupid’ or ‘inadequate.’
Eminem does understand the power certain language has for certain groups of people, however, because in a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine he vehemently denied that he would ever or has ever used the n-word to talk about African Americans.
‘These people rap about the people they know and what’s going on on their block,’ said Orlando, a DJ and the program director for Wild 98.7. ‘When Eminem says the word ‘bitch’ to talk about a girl, he is not talking about every girl.’
Perhaps what Eminem must understand is that for some people, hearing that language at all is akin to being slapped in the face, and no explanation can take away that sting. That fact should not curtail him as an artist, but it should also not make controversy a surprise.
And let’s face it folks, much of the controversy about the album has an undertone of race. For years African American rappers have been saying roughly the same things Eminem is saying now, and have also had success. But now a Caucasian guy is doing the same thing, and getting a great deal of attention and critical success to boot, and that scares those who would rather their children and the public in general not be clued in to the issues addressed by hip hop.
In the midst of the controversy, one almost takes for granted the amazing artistry of the album. Eminem is an innovative and consistently excellent lyricist whose metaphors, similes and caustic one-liners snap and land on the listener’s brain like a whiplash. It is also obvious on the album that the songs are as tightly structured sonically as the lyrics are verbally. Dr. Dre, the critically- acclaimed rap superstar who also produced Eminem’s Slim Shady LP, is at his finest when working with such a prodigious talent as Eminem.
The controversies surrounding The Marshall Mathers LP has not hurt Eminem’s commercial viability, however, and he continues to be a favorite among the mainstream and underground hip hop audiences.
‘The single ‘The Real Slim Shady’ was played all summer,’ said Matthew Whitten, a hip hop DJ and marketing director for WBUL. ‘When the semester kicks in, the DJs here will probably be playing the rest of the album as well more. I personally still play The Slim Shady LP.’
‘We caught a lot of flack for playing the first CD,’ said Orlando. ‘So (controversy regarding Eminem) is nothing new to us. We fully support Eminem’s product. We find it compelling and we welcome the music he sends up. We also find no parity between (the music) and the social ill people are trying to pin on (Eminem).’
The question of whether art fuels society or society fuels art is as old as culture itself and as impossible to answer as the chicken-and-the-egg question. But one thing is definite, one cannot exist without the other. Artists such as Eminem reveal to us the extent of our problems, and perhaps it is through this honest expression that society can begin to heal its wounds.

Quincy D. Vierling offers us an excellent analysis and understanding of Eminem and hip hop in general. This article is definitly worth reading.

Eminem’s music has cured me from so many deseases I had inside. He has been an eye opener to me.
I used to be very hurt inside from problems I had since my childhood. My mom did not suffer from Munchhausen’s syndrome and I think my childhood has been a lot happier than Marshall’s. But I think my parents have abused me emotionally. My mom used to make me believe that I would never succeed in reaching my goals. When I was 6 years old, I wanted to be a writer and my mom told me that I would never get published, that I had nothing interesting to say anyway. Words can sometimes hurt more than being knocked right in the face.
I believed what she said and began to hate myself. My parents openly showed me that I was worth nothing (in their opinion). I hated them and used to feel very guilty about that.
The song ‘Cleaning Out My Closet’ has been much more then a therapy, it has shown me that you have the right to express your rage and your anger against your parents. When you are hurt, it is sometimes so hard to let your emotions out. When I’m singing this song, I feel liberated from all the negative emotions I had kept inside for years.
I also used to care about people’s opinion about me. I didn’t dare talking back when somebody insulted me. Thanks to Eminem’s ‘just don’t give a fuck attitude’, I now dare expressing my own opinions, no matter how people will judge me or call me. I have become self confident.
I was an old fashioned person in my whole way of life, I mean in nearly everything ( my clothing, my whole attitude). I used to suffer from a lot of inhibitions. Eminem has changed all this. His lyrics have thought me to humor myself. Through some of his jokes contained in his lyrics, I understood that it was useless to take myself too seriously.
But the most important I have learnt from Marshall Mathers through his life story and also through his lyrics is that you can succeed in your goals if you work hard at it and if you believe in your dreams.
I think I have found myself in Eminem’s music. I can relate to some of his songs and his music managed to move me deep inside.
Today I’m a self confident and balanced person and it is all thanks to Eminem.