Do hip-hop feuds have a life expectancy?
Not in this case, for Eminem dissed Machine Gun Kelly not once, but twice on his new record. Eminem surprise dropped Music to Be Murdered By – Side B on December 18 which includes a few rapper references.
Snoop Dogg, Drake, and even Billie Eilish are just some of the names called out on the album. Unsurprisingly, Eminem calls out Machine Gun Kelly on two seperate tracks. The pair’s drama in the hip-hop industry goes back to 2012, right on the brink of MGK’s success.
Eminem and Machine Gun Kelly traded diss tracks back in 2018, which many thought would bring their feud to a close. Two years ago, on the record Kamikaze, Eninem released “Not Alike,” which took shoots at Kelly. In response, MGK released the song “Rap Devil,” which is the direct antithesis of Eminem’s infamous hit “Rap God.”
Emimen Dissed Machine Gun Kelly… Again
Now, Eminem is bringing 2020 to a close by resurfacing this infamous rap feud with the rapper-turned-pop punk star. (MGK has had quite the year as a rockstar, releasing his first #1 album and performing at the American Music Awards.)
The two tracks on Music to Be Murdered By – Side B that reference Kelly are “Zeus” and “Gnat.” On “Zeus,” Eminem raps the following line: “Fair weather, wishy-washy, she thinks Machine washed me. Swear to God, man, her favorite rapper wish he’d crossed me.”
Later on in the record, on Zeus, he brings up MGK’s stage name again, just as slyly. “They come at me with machine guns, like trying to fight off a gnat.”
While neither reference is black and white, the pair’s history makes the point clear. Eminem dissed Machine Gun Kelly and he will continue to do so. The question is will MGK take the bait after riding the high of his 2020. Judging by his social media response, fans believe that Kelly will be leaving the feud in the past – unlike Eminem.
The day the record dropped, Machine Gun Kelly tweeted “those subliminals,” followed by a laughing emoji and a trashcan emoji. Because the message that Eminem rapped wasn’t explicit, MGK noted them as subliminal messages.
He, as well as many others in the rap community, understood what was going on, though. Machine Gun Kelly is saying that Eminem’s disses toward him were trash. This response is not a full “Rap God” meets “Rap Devil” moment, but it could be the lead up. Fans of both artists and their respective, successful 2020 albums will surely be paying close attention to what comes next.
Listen to Eminem’s new, Machine Gun Kelly referencing songs, “Zeus” and “Gnat,” below.
