By Wil Forbis
3/15/01
If there's been any sort
of complaint over the past month of Acid Logic it's been that the columns
were humorous but lacking in any real substance. However, I'd thought
I'd shake things up a bit, by offering the following musings on Eminem,
lacking in both humor and substance. Hah! Didn't see that one
coming, did ya?
There's no doubt that the
man we've come to know as Eminem has created quite a stir, in barroom
conversation, op/ed pieces, and in the most accurate barometer I know
of for popular opinion: the Acid Logic guestbook. The opinions vary
widely, from stirring defenses of Em's artistic license to grand dismissals
of him as a misogynistic, gay-bashing bigot. My personal views have
undulated frequently; I have a tremendous admiration for his lyrical
and satirical skills, but even I, an individual who's caused more than
one person to actually burst into tears with his obnoxious banter, find
Eminem kind of… extreme. Frankly, before this hullabaloo, I wasn't even
sure I had morals, but now I find that I do, and that they reside somewhere
south of song lyrics discussing cutting up your wife's corpse and letting
your baby play with the body parts.
Of course violence towards
women is only one half of the Eminem equation, what about the homophobia?
It will come as a surprise to those who are familiar with my work, that
once I was a homophobic bigot along the lines of Eminem and, as he expressed
his bile through his art form, so did I, creating such infamous web
sites as "Kill-Gays-For-Jesus.com" and "Boil-in-Your-Own-Urine-Fruitcake.net"
(which was featured on the Today Show, allowing me the opportunity have
a newly widowed Katie Couric reject my request for her to pop out of
a cake, naked, at John Saleeby's birthday party.) Eventually, my views
on the subject softened as I began to talk, to really emphasize with
various gay friends. By listening to their experiences, by hearing their
stories of societal rejection and loathing I began to realize how hurtful
my statements were and radically changed my views. (Actually, I just
watched a few episodes of Will and Grace and that set me straight...
no pun intended!) As such, my feelings towards gays have evolved from
absolute loathing and disgust to the simple mistrust and fear I feel
towards all humans. I even renamed one of my sites, "Hug-Gays-For-Jesus.com",
which resulted in me trading in the several million gays who were calling
for my execution, for several million Christian fundamentalists who
are now calling for my execution. There's nothing like a little variety…
Eminem's relationship with
the gay community has been even more fascinating than mine, in part
due to the fact that it isn't made up. (The truth is, most gays have
absolutely no problem ignoring me, especially if they're waiters.) While
his first album "The Slim Shady LP" was controversial, it restricted
its digs towards the gay community to slams of the limited jock vocabulary
and were easily ignored. But with the follow up, "The Marshall Mathers
LP," Eminem's lyrical bite came out full force against homosexuals,
with verses so jaggedly familiar to the reader that I needn't feel guilty
for not putting any effort towards digging them up and repeating them
here. Despite the fact that a lot of the gay clubsters in my old hometown
of Seattle seemed able to look past the album and laugh, the ire of
some segments of the homosexual community were definitely raised, and
they made clear they were unhappy with a major label record containing
such homophobic venom. In particular The Gay and Lesbian Adovocates
and Defenders were understandably upset with Em, going so far as to
release several statements to the press and picketing his Grammy performance
with Elton John.
Several defenses have been
offered on Eminem' lyrics. The predictably gutless music press has managed
to walk a thin line between their support of First Amendment rights
and their stringent politically correct mantra by basically stating
that they "get the joke." A more substantial defense has been brought
up by thinking humans (e.g. non entertainment journalists) which I've
filed under "the Joe Pesci Defense": It argues that in every other medium
creative types can offer express views under the guise of being in character,
but we do not afford this luxury to musicians. For example, no one's
every accused Joe Pesci of glamorizing racism, violence and murder,
though he's almost exclusively played characters who in engage in those
activities.
However, neither of those
arguments fully defends Eminem. Simply stating that it's all a joke
actually backfires on Em by castrating him of the anti-P.C. rhetoric
that makes him such an respectable rock and roll outlaw. And the Joe
Pesci Defense fails because you just can't help but feel Eminem does
mean what he says on his albums. Perhaps he's simply too good an actor,
but the belief systems of his various pseudonyms - Eminem, Marshall
Mathers and Slim Shadey - seem to have roots strong enough that they
must come from a real personality.
Which only leads to one
conclusion - one of the most interesting, talented and successful musicians
on the scene today is, as well as being a refreshing jolt of rebellion
badly needed by the music industry, a gay bashing and misogynistic bigot
who's being heralded by the music press and teenagers alike with little
criticism of his views. That might seem rather disconcerting, as well
as a surefire invitation for more Mathew Sheppards, but I think there's
more to it than that. While I don't buy Eminem's excuse that it's all
a joke, I do think his reactionary bantering comes from the magnified
feeling of inadequacy felt by most youth (Eminem may be approaching
thirty, but he undoubtedly provides a voice for the current generation
of angst ridden teens. Hey, in my day in was Axl Rose.) And like most
young punks, he'll grow up (assuming the music business doesn't simply
stand by while he self destructs.)
I think Emmie's duet with
well known homosexual, Elton John, at the Grammies shows the beginning
of the maturation process and Eminem acknowledging the pressure from
the gay moralists. Would this have happened without pressure from groups
such as GLAD and the stray negative music journalists who called Eminem
to task for his anti-gay stance? I don't think so. The fact that GLAD
should be congratulating themselves is a point being missed by everyone,
including GLAD themselves. They chastised Eminem, and the media for
not condemning him, and what happened? Eminem made a definite concession
by embracing a well known homosexual at the Grammies. If they can't
find at least a symbolic victory in that action, they're missing the
big picture.
The final test will of course
be Eminem's next album. Will his continue to vent his vitriol against
the gay community, or will he do what all artists, indeed all people
should do: Evolve. Has he learned anything from the backlash he's created,
or from the summit meeting that occurred between he and Elton John?
Doubtlessly, he'll continue to operate with a penchant for shock value,
but at his core, I believe you'll see a difference. I, for one, think
he will indeed make an adjustment and start using his vast powers for
good, instead of evil.
