When it comes to rap music, there are few things which inspire as much ire and controversy as diss tracks. No genre other than hip-hop so actively encourages such intense and vitriolic rivalries. Many of the feuds between rappers have since become legendary. The thing is, even though they're often aggressive, confrontational, and even self-indulgent at times, diss tracks have been responsible for some really great sounds over the years. Just think of "Hit 'Em Up" by Tupac, or "Takeover" by Jay Z, if you want examples.
The most recent diss track to hit the airwaves comes courtesy of Eminem, off the back of the release of his new album "Kamikaze." In "Killshot", Eminem attacks his latest nemesis, Machine Gun Kelly, who famously spawned the diss track “Rap Devil” in which he threatened him. Slim's track has already garnered 56 million views on YouTube, with many fans declaring Machine Gun Kelly's career over as a result of the barbs thrown by Shady.
However, not everyone was that impressed with the track. For example, Australian songwriter Iggy Azalea took to Twitter to complain that she thought that Eminem's new track was lazier than his earlier work.
She wrote: "Diss songs shouldn’t be filled with celebrity name drops to pad out lazy bars ... Also let’s talk about why it’s lazy now; but wasn’t in the earlier work. The earlier stuff was crazy, twisted and creative. This stuff feels more like picking names that fit easily into a rhyme scheme. And that’s my unbiased opinion from a girl that watched this guys set and sung the words in the crowd. I’d think it regardless. One of the greatest to do it, I’m NOT in dispute about that. But I do think the name dropping thing has become a crotch. [sic]"
However, Eminem's fans were angered by Iggy's remarks and quickly rushed to their idol's defence on social media. One irate Twitter user wrote: "I don’t think you can give an unbiased opinion on somebody name dropping you like ten minutes after they name drop you lmao."
Another angry fan wrote: "So where was you when MGK dropped his DISS TRACK & drop Em's name & his ex's name & his daughter's name? I love you Iggy but DON'T come for Eminem. I love X-Tina but she should've kept her mouth shut about his personal life. You should zip it & about worry about your tour. [sic]"
However, it seems as though Iggy didn't take their words particularly seriously since she later tweeted: "Iam beyond prepared to be trolled for this opinion ... Hahahahaha y’all mad as fuck! I said what I said!" Perhaps she does have a valid criticism, but it's only her personal opinion after all. Still, I guess it just goes to show that Eminem has plenty of back-up from his fans, and is still a force to be reckoned with.