With Kamikaze fever in full swing, fans have spent the better part of the last twelve hours delving into the densely-packed lyrics of Eminem’s latest — but not everyone is happy with what they’ve unearthed. On one song, in particular, Em returns to an old bad habit that doesn’t fly as freely in 2018 — namely, using a homophobic slur in regards to another popular rapper who once found himself in hot water for doing the same, Tyler The Creator.
On the song “Fall,” Eminem directly references a time when Tyler called himself the homophobic slur “f*ggot,” an affection the younger rapper has since left by the wayside after finally coming out on his last album, Flower Boy. While Tyler and his Odd Future cohorts didn’t haven’t much problem slinging the offensive term around early on in their careers, they’ve since grown up a bit. That hasn’t stopped Eminem from revisiting their past with his own troublesome display of wordplay on Kamikaze.
“Tyler create nothing, I see why you called yourself a f*ggot, b*tch,” he snaps on “Fall.” “It’s not just ’cause you lack attention / It’s ’cause you worship D12’s balls, you’re sack-religious.” Aside from that awful pun, it’s clear Em hasn’t taken too kindly to some of Tyler’s critiques of his previous work nor siding with Em’s former Dirty Dozen clique after he fell out with them — which is ironic, as members of D12 have also dissed Tyler with homophobic rhymes. Meanwhile, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, who are sampled on the song, has distanced himself from the lyrics, saying he wasn’t in the studio when it was recorded and has asked Em to change the song. The word “f*ggot” itself is muted, but unmistakable.
While Tyler long counted Eminem as one of his biggest inspirations, it seems their paths have diverged, and now, fans are also split about their allegiances and reactions to Eminem’s jousting. While some have been defending Em, many seem pretty upset that he still feels like he can punch down in an era when the human rights of marginalized groups are literally being chipped away by government policies. Check out some of the responses below, and feel free to weigh in.
Eminem had a few words for Tyler, The Creator on his new album… pic.twitter.com/NfPYvBwFz6
— Odd Future: Fan Page (@OddFuturePage) August 31, 2018
Eminem calls Tyler the Creator a ‘faggot’ on new album and here’s why he’s about to defend this usage AGAIN even after being dragged in 2013 pic.twitter.com/Z6b40adu36
— Zach Stafford (@ZachStafford) August 31, 2018
https://twitter.com/AndresWrites/status/1035393565973602305
Eminem can catch a huge L for calling Tyler, the Creator the f word. Ya old bitter ass
— Atwood (@atwoodotj) August 31, 2018
eminem really thought it's cool to call tyler the creator the f word,,,,, didn't his career end 10 years ago lmao
— carlotta (@lovergirlcarly) August 31, 2018
We just gonna act like Eminem didn’t just passively call Tyler, The Creator a f*ggot tho? pic.twitter.com/LP7lmpvhm5
— mikey 𒉭 (@crackpipemikey) August 31, 2018
https://twitter.com/AIDYEDDY/status/1035394221266558976
unfriendly reminder that tyler, the creator is banned from the UK for using the word "fxggot" on his first two albums, then he came out on 'flower boy' and eminem pointed that slur at him in a song released today but eminem will not be banned from the UK
— G (@oneofthosefaces) August 31, 2018
Can't even say I'm surprised that Eminem is still using homophobic slurs in 2018 bc he's a fucking child but Justin Vernon, what the hell are you doing on the track man. pic.twitter.com/z2ySJBNF85
— Roisin O'Connor (@Roisin_OConnor) August 31, 2018
Help me understand why a 45 year old man is aggressively rapping "faggot" and we are calling this a "surprise" as if this is fun for anyone.
— Donna-Claire (@DonnaCWrites) August 31, 2018