EMINEM’S UNEXPECTED ALBUM ‘KAMIKAZE’ WINS RAVES FROM LEBRON, DISS FROM RAP RIVAL
Eminem surprised the world with the unexpected release of his new album, “Kamikaze.” He broke the news of the previously unannounced 13-track release, his 10th studio album, by tweeting: “Tried not 2 overthink this 1… enjoy.”
It includes tracks pairing the Detroit rapper with Joyner Lucas, Royce da 5’9” and Jessie Reyez.
The disc also includes the song “Venom,” which will be featured in the upcoming film of the same name based on the Marvel Comics character.
“Kamikaze” doesn’t find Eminem in a peaceful place, kicking off with “The Ringer,” in which he says he wants to “punch the world” in the face.
The cover shows the rear end of a fighter plane — recalling a remarkably similar cover of the Beastie Boys’ 1986 album “Licensed to Ill,” which has brought out the haters on social media.
But LeBron James isn’t one of them. Just hours after “Kamikaze” was released, James, the longtime Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat star now with the Los Angeles Lakes, tweeted his rave review, already quoting the album’s lyrics: “Now if y’all this Eminem ‘Kamikaze’ album isn’t” — and here he plugged in five “on-fire” emojis — “you’re just hating and incompetent of lyrics/cadence/breakdown of his raps. Oh and he pulling quite a few in a body bag too.”
Rap rival Machine Gun Kelly wasn’t as impressed, firing back at Eminem in a new diss track “Rap Devil” in response to the Detroit rapper’s diss against him on “Not Alike.”
The two have had issues since 2012, when MGK tweeted that Eminem’s daughter Hailie was “hot as (expletive),” which he has since said resulted in him being blackballed in the industry. Eminem’s daughter was 16 at the time.
On “Kamikaze,” Eminem addresses the 2012 tweet in “Not Alike”: “If you wanna come at me with a sub, Machine Gun / And I’m talkin’ to you, but you already know who the (expletive) you are, Kelly / I don’t use sublims and sure as (expletive) don’t sneak-diss / But keep commenting on my daughter Hailie.”
MGK fired back in his new track, rapping: “Mad about something I said in 2012 / Took you six years and a surprise album just to come with a diss.”
MGK drops insults about everything from Eminem’s “weird” beard and “corny hats” to “the fact your last four albums is as bad as your selfie.”
“Homie we get it, we know that you’re the greatest rapper alive / (Expletive) dweeb, all you do is read the dictionary and stay inside,” Machine Gun Kelly says on the song.
He continues: “The big bad bully of the rap game can’t take a (expletive) joke / Oh you want some (expletive) smoke (what?) / But not literally, you’ll choke.”
MGK got in some digs about Eminem’s age, too: “Knees weak of old age / The real Slim Shady can’t stand up.”
Eminem addresses comparisons between the two on his own diss track, saying: “We are not alike, there’s not a likeness on the mic.”
“You say you’re affiliated with murderers, killas / The people you run with are thuggin’ / But you’re just a wannabe gunna,” Eminem raps on the track.
The 10-song, three-skit album comes eight months after “Revival,” which got mixed reviews. Unlike the lengthy, intricate build-up campaign for that record, “Kamikaze” flew in out of the blue.