From Kesha’s legal battle to free herself from Dr. Women’s credibility is always thrown into question as a sweeping sense of disbelief arises with any accusation of sexual misconduct. Time and time again, women’s voices, talent and experiences are disparaged to protect the reputation of male musicians. No one put it better than Giles Foden in The Guardian in 2003 when he wrote: “Nevermind the misogyny and homophobia, Eminem is a brilliant poet.” Ultimately, Eminem’s “art” protects and shields him from criticism, and when accused of bad behaviour he can hide behind his Slim Shady persona. The conversation around Eminem has always taken place on the terms of fawning critics, hyping him up as the “hip-hop Elvis”. But none of it ever really sticks, owing to his position and authority as a musical genius. It’s no secret that throughout most of Eminem’s career, he’s been dogged by criticisms of rampant homophobia and misogyny. And because he resembles most of the men who run the industry, few of them are in any hurry to act when he is accused of heinous behaviour, lest their own actions come into question.” He sells records, concert tickets and magazines. As she explains: “The male genius is the norm from which everyone else deviates. What also insidiously underpinned much of the public reaction and media coverage was what The Guardian’s Laura Snapes referred to as “the myth of the unbridled male genius”. After calling Nick Cannon (Mariah’s then-husband) a “faggot ”, he says: “ Like I’ma sit and fight with you over that slut-bitch-cunt that made / Me put up with her psycho-ass over six / Months and only spread her legs to let me hit once”. He then threatens Mariah with blackmail, rapping “ Bitch shut the fuck up ‘fore I put all them phone calls out”, and subsequently declares he has “ Enough dirt on to murder ”. Sounding like a petulant manchild with a persecution complex, Eminem starts the track by saying he’s the victim: “Only reason I dissed you in the first place / Is because you denied seeing me”. When Eminem inevitably retaliated against Mariah with The Warning, it was dismissed as just another latest in a string of women Eminem had attacked, including Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Lindsay Lohan and Amy Winehouse. Obsessed’s target was never one person - it was a universal anthem for women. In Obsessed, Mariah calls the subject of the song out for ‘ Lyin’ that you’re sexing me’ and wonders why he’s “ Tellin’ the world how much you miss me / But we never were, so why you trippin’?” It’s no coincidence the song specifically asks women to join in with lyrics like “ All the ladies sing”, or that Mariah never confirmed that the song and video were even about Eminem. Instead, the fact that Mariah decided to speak out against the misogynistic gaslighting that’s so pervasive in our society was ignored.
Headlines like “Mariah Carey fires back at Eminem” were everywhere, with some critics arguing that Obsessed was just a publicity stunt designed to “help Mariah stay in the headlines for weeks to come - long enough to fuel hype for her album”.
Nevertheless, the he-said, she-said media circus, fuelled by an online stan war in the comment section of each artist’s YouTube videos (which still rages on today), dominated public discourse when it came to Obsessed. It’s something that Mariah has always vehemently denied, while Eminem continues to bang on about. Non-stans might not know that since 2001, rumours have swirled that these two (briefly) dated. That’s because after the song was released, fans and music critics alike went into a frenzy of speculation that this was the diva’s clapback to Eminem’s song Bagpipes for Baghdad, in which he makes a plea to rekindle a romance, while also calling Carey a “fucking whore”. But talk to people on the street and they probably only know it as “that one about Eminem”.
It’s a song that offers listeners a blistering account of what it’s like having a guy stalk and harass you for years. It’s been almost ten years since Mariah Carey dropped her infamous single Obsessed. This article originally appeared on i-D UK.
0 kommentar(er)
