It’s somewhat ironic that for someone who basically built his career on beefing with other entertainers, Eminem basically refuses to perform any of his well-known diss tracks live, including most recent Machine Gun Kelly evisceration, “Killshot.” However, that doesn’t mean that Em won’t acknowledge his foes during shows, which is exactly what happened during a recent tour stop in Brisbane, Australia. During his set, an audience member somehow requested “Killshot” loudly enough for Em to hear, but instead of a performance of the diss track, Em gave an entirely different response.
“I would,” Em demurred, “But I don’t want to give that c*cksucker any more f*cking light. Make some noise for your-f*cking-selves and make nothing for MGK.” He instead closed the show with a rendition of his massive hit “Lose Yourself,” which seems slightly more appropriate considering it was a monster hit that didn’t rely on knowledge of his ongoing feud with another rapper for its full impact — or that of its accompanying film, 8 Mile, for that matter.
Eminem and MGK traded shots last year after the surprise release of Eminem’s tenth studio album, Kamikaze. The album’s intro, “The Ringer,” contained snipes at the younger rapper based on some of his comments from Twitter and interviews two years before, prompting MGK to respond with his own diss track, “Rap Devil” — an inverted reference to Em’s The Marshall Mathers LP 2 single “Rap God.” Em fired back with “Killshot,” but it’s been quiet since, aside from some rowdy references at MGK’s own shows. Whether or not this latest provocations reignites their beef remains to be seen, but both have had plenty of time to prepare some true lyrical pyrotechnics for a possible round two.
