Eminem takes shots at Megan Thee Stallion in ‘Houdini’
In Eminem’s new single ‘Houdini’, one line that references Megan Thee Stallion has divided listeners. Early in the track, the rapper says, “If I was to ask Megan Thee Stallion if she would collab with me, would I really have a shot at a feat?” The line refers to when Tory Lanez shot Megan in the foot in 2020. Some listeners believe the lyric is a step too far, while others defend Eminem, saying it is completely within his intentionally provocative character.
In 2020, Tory Lanez was charged with shooting Megan Thee Stallion in the foot. He was found guilty of the shooting in 2022 and eventually sentenced in 2023. He is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence. While Megan has yet to comment on the line, she has previously lashed out at rappers for seeking “clout” by referencing the incident.
It seems out of pocket for Eminem to bring up the incident in his new single, which dropped on May 31st; however, in his latest track, the rapper seems to step back into his role as the rapper Slim Shady, meaning he is intentionally rapping provocatively, embodying a character whose mission it is to offend.
In Eminem’s early music, on albums such as The Eminem Show and The Marshall Mathers LP, the rapper name-dropped various celebrities in the hope of offending or shocking people. In the new video, we see Slim Shady, his character from those early albums, step through a portal into the modern world. In that sense, people defend the comment, saying it’s done more in the vein of a concept as Eminem embodies a character instead of speaking as himself.
In ‘Houdini’, Eminem doesn’t just mention Megan Thee Stallion but also name drops R Kelly, Dr Dre, RuPaul and his own children, “Fuck my own kids, they’re brats.”
In 2022, Drake rapped in the song ‘Circo Loco’ with 21 Savage, “This bitch lie ‘bout getting shots, but she still a stallion.” Megan wasn’t happy with the line, taking to social media and saying, “Since when tf is it cool to joke abt women getting shot!” She criticised Drake and other rappers who “Dog pile on a black woman when she say one of y’all homeboys abused her.”
Similar to this response, a lot of her fans and casual listeners are criticising the song saying it does similar to what Drake’s did years ago. We currently await Megan Thee Stallion’s comments on the line, should she provide any.
Eminem’s new album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce), is set to be released this summer; however, no official date has yet been given to the album. This remains a developing story until further comment on the song is provided.