Eminem Cover......What Do You Think?

First, let me just say that I'm going into this post already knowing that most people are going to look at this image and think, 'what the fuck?'

Second, I know that the 'what the fuck' is not necessarily going to come from a firm comprehension of what the designer's intentions were when they spiced this together - It's going to come more from "what the hell was he thinking?" train of thought.

I've never liked Eminem. Granted, I'm not a big Hip-Hop fan but what I never understood were his lyrics. They never really made much of an impression, as he always seems like a spoiled, whiny brat using misogynist lyrics and faux-horror tales to be provocative, and I never thought that it really worked. And the beats / production always seemed childlike. Granted, I'm not a angst-ridden suburban white boy dying to be black...actually, as I write this I'm listening to Dying Fetus's War of Attrition.  Much better, indeed.

Anyhoo,so over at Racialicious they have a debate goin' on about this cover and there have been some really interesting takes: First, does the cover allude to an unjustified vilification of Eminem by American media? An unjustified vilification of Eminem by African-Americans? The obvious symbolism of lynching? One thing that was noted was that the Klu Klux Klan are in black uniforms, not the standard white, which is why some thought that it might be targeted towards African-Americans. Also, instead of the usual confederate flag, it is an American flag and the Pit bull or Rottweiler - I don't know what is what - is a symbol commonly used within black - oriented gangster Hip-Hop images. Most importantly, the cover is for the remix of a track called "Black America."

Who knows? I just thought this was interesting because of how foolish it would be if the designers (I'm not giving Eminem any credit for this) thought that the cover represented his vilification within the African-American population, which is laughable. However, if we can look at past singles in which he indicates that he feels that the media is picking on him - that he is misunderstood (dripping sarcasm) - it could go either way. I don't really care, but I was really interested in this imagery. So If this alludes to black artists or black Hip-Hop fans are not giving him a chance, he should really shut the fuck up and pull a Kid Rock - go Country / Southern Rock (I'm not trying to be trite; I like Kid's stuff.... well, I respect what he's doing). After all, hasn't Eminem sold like, millions of records and won all sorts of awards, culturally appropriating black culture?

One other thing that the folks at Racialicious mentioned was his issue with black women. He has previously written a song - admittedly waay back before he gained mainstream attention - about how black girls are gold diggers, hoes.....yadayadayada. He allegedly went after Mariah Carey (again) on a track on his new album, and her husband, Nick Cannon, went after him ( see link above). 

You know what? I'm going to give him a break. I'm not going to believe that in order to garner some attention to his shitty new record he is purposefully doing this. If he does come out publicly and mention that he feels he is getting an unfair shake from black Hip-hop fans, then I will write another post on the hypocrisy of this - how black folks in the rock / punk / metal scenes have a harder time gaining mainstream attention than this fool, and how he needs to think about it before his designer come up with  ridiculous - and more importantly, racially insensitive - cover art.

Comments

[Lainad]

I agree that Rap is a more suitable platform for Eminem and also agree that yes, Rap is crushing rock music in terms of record sales, etc.

For the book I am working on, I'm asking black female metal musicians and rock fans if they feel that urban populations have an obligation to cover alternative artists. While many disagree that an obligation is present, magazines like VIBE - who used to cover artists like Lenny Kravitz, Vernon Reid and Joi have in the past done so, yet with the latest crop of performers have been ignored. I think it depends on what their philosophy is. If they simply want to focus on black-centric, or popular culture - because that is what sells - then fine. If they want to create a publication that celebrates the diversity within black culture or from other cultural ethnicities, then they should cover all artists, as they are providing the readers with a viewpoint or a culture that they may have not experienced.

I like the fact that Decibel will cover artists regardless of their ethnicity,simply because they are a) good and b) fit the genre that the magazine is focused on. I would like to see more 'black' publications - especially because of the particular dynamics within black rock culture - reflected a bit more. Plus, in struggling to pitch to both American and Canadian publications on articles concerning 'alternative' black artists, I do think that there is an institutional bias.

[Invisible Oranges]

I'm not sure if it's productive to compare rap to rock. Someone did an analysis of Top 10 or #1 hits or something like that in the past few years, and found that rap/r&b is crushing rock in sales and popularity. Any popular rap artist regardless of race will get more exposure now than a popular rock artist.

Also, rap is a more natural platform for provocations of the sort Eminem is perpetrating here.

Finally, "American Urban" publications have no obligation to cover female black rock musicians b/c rock is not their game. I don't pick up XXL or Vibe to read about rock music. (A black-centric magazine should cover black musicians of all kinds, though. XXL and Vibe are more lifestyle mags than race-oriented ones.) Similarly, one doesn't pick up, say, Decibel or Revolver to read about rap. God Forbid and Suffocation make it into their pages naturally enough.

I'm not sure if I see institutional bias here so much as simple economics. If Janet Jackson is willing to show skin, pretty much any magazine would get down with that. She just has more selling power right now than any black female rocker.

[Lainad]

Thanks Cosmo. Funny you mention Kevin's article. I really don't see how Dying Fetus falls under the "Wigger Slam" category - which is an offensive term in itself.

Also I don't - or didn't mean to trivialize the issue - and honestly, I have never seen otherwise - if there is some blowback from black communities about Eminem's presence in Hip-Hop culture. However, if there is I think that in terms of monetary sales, it affects him on a waay lesser scale than a black female rock musician. .

But in terms of media / American Urban publications, they have given him way more press than any black rock or alternative musician. Because of that, I do not feel sorry for him at all. But I do agree that this issue should not be dismissed and it is a genuine and complex issue.

[Invisible Oranges]

I don't know what the track is about, but my first impression is that Eminem is just pushing as many buttons as possible to get a rise out of viewers - the title, the American flag, the crosses, the noose. This is a sales tactic, not an artistic one.

That said, Eminem's always had the white/black thing swirling around him, so maybe this is his way of confronting it head-on. The noose could simply represent the age-old scrutiny he has gotten from being white in a black idiom. As you point out, it's interesting how the symbols don't appear in traditional configurations. Certainly Eminem is not being lynched by white folk here. I don't think the "vilification" from black America that you mention, or a visual attempt to represent that, is laughable. It is a genuine and complex issue.

Interesting that you mention Dying Fetus - see the wigger slam feature in the Isis issue of Decibel.