Eminem surprised fans with a new album Music To Be Murdered By on Friday, January 17. As people began to listen through the 20-track project, there was some criticism for some insensitive lyrics — most notably on the track “Unaccommodating” featuring Young M.A.
On the track, Eminem references the suicide-bombing which took place at a 2017 Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena in England.
“Showed them all the blueprint and formula/ But it seems like the more they studied my music the more they remind me of eyeballs,” Eminem raps. “I’m watching my pupils get cornier/ But I’m contemplating yelling “Bombs away!” on the game/ Like I’m outside of an Ariana Grande concert waiting.”
The bombing claimed the lives of 22 people, so predictably, people were unhappy with the reference made by Em.
Of course, Eminem previously helped raise money for the families of victims killed in the tragedy by sharing a donation link from the British Red Cross and the Manchester Evening News. After sharing the link, it was reported that Eminem helped raise nearly $2 million for the victims.
But because this is the internet and cancel culture is as prevalent as ever, the comments kept rolling in condemning Eminem for his insensitive lyrics on the track.
People also noted that Eminem was “disrespecting” Mac Miller, Ariana Grande’s ex-boyfriend, by releasing his surprise album on the same day that Miller’s posthumous project dropped.
You can check out some of the responses from Twitter users below.
“eminem literally just made a joke about the manchester bombing at ariana grande’s concert… that is just so f*cking sick, y’all better not give this man any attention,” another Twitter user wrote. “people literally lost their lives, and you’re going to release music and try to make a profit off of them?”
Meanwhile, Eminem’s album has already reached the No. 1 spot in more than 50 countries.
