EMINEM: GENIUS?

James Joyner | Thursday, October 23, 2003

Jon Mandle, writing at Crooked Timber, discusses a review of Marshall Mathers (”Eminem”) in the current New York Review of Books. (More precisely, it’s a review of three books on Eminem, one a 148 masterpice by its subject.) The discussion is an interesting one, especially the topic of racial “authenticity.”

Personally, while I find some of Mathers’ lyrics clever, I find the merits of the work overshadowed by the vile misogyny, violent overtones, and the whole “I’m such a poor, misunderstood multimillionaire” schtick. But I’m not, as they say, the target audience.

About the Author: James Joyner is the publisher of Outside the Beltway and the managing editor of the Atlantic Council. He's a former Army officer, Desert Storm vet, and college professor with a PhD in political science from The University of Alabama. He lives just outside the Beltway in Alexandria, Virginia.

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I think Eminem has a little-known niche with the ultra-groovy I'm-so-left-I'm-right-set.

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Posted by Eric M | October 23, 2003 | 02:16 pm | Permalink

 

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