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What Did Eminem Say About Late Superman Star Christopher Reeve In New Album Track? Explored
Eminem spared a posthumous diss on the late Superman star Christopher Reeve and reignited the controversy with the release of The Death of Slim Shady (Coupd de Grâce) on July 12, 2024.
Trigger warning: This article contains mentions of death
Eminem has once again stirred controversy with a posthumous diss aimed at the late Christopher Reeve. The rapper has a history of mocking the former Superman star dating back to his 2000 album, The Marshall Mathers LP.
With the release of his latest album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce), on July 12, 2024, Eminem revisits this contentious topic. In a track titled Brand New Dance, he references Reeve, who was paralyzed, harkening back to his earlier and more provocative Slim Shady persona.
What did Eminem say about Christopher Reeve in the new track?
Eminem’s track Brand New Dance from his album The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce) has sparked controversy for its lyrics mocking the late Christopher Reeve, who famously portrayed Superman. The song includes provocative lines encouraging everyone, including Reeve, to get up and dance, despite the actor being wheelchair-bound following a tragic equestrian accident that left him paralyzed from the neck down.
"Get up/ Everybody on the dance floor, come on/ That means you too, Chris,” the intro verse states, accompanied by his distinctive laugh.
However, that’s not the end of Reeve’s involvement with the track. In the chorus, he further intensifies the controversy by instructing people to imitate Reeve's name, encouraging them to dance with the lyrics, “On the count of three, everybody do the Christopher Reeves/ One, two, three, follow me."
Christopher Reeve is one of the earliest stars to play Superman. He starred in the 1978 original and three sequels later on, until 1987. The actor met with an unfortunate tragedy after he fell from a horse at an equestrian competition in 1995. Ever since, he was supported by a wheelchair for the remainder of his life, before passing away at 52 in 2004.
Surprisingly, Eminem hardly empathized with the actor’s fateful condition and relentlessly dissed him throughout his career. His feats fueled speculations about a potential feud between the two, with fans wondering how Reeve could have possibly irked the Rap God singer.
Christopher Reeve was a hero to Eminem
Much like any other kid of the era, Christopher Reeve was a hero to Eminem. The latter clarified the fact in one of his tracks from the 2004 album Encore, where he called Reeve his childhood hero.
In the song Rain Man, the Grammy winner rapped, “And let's clear this up too; I ain't got no beef with him either/He used to be like a hero to me/I even believe I/Had one of those 25-cent stickers on my refri-gerator/Right next to Darth Vader." This acknowledgment of Reeve's hero status contrasts sharply with Eminem's later lyrics, where he made jokes about Reeve's disability, sparking controversy and criticism.
"Despite dissing him 44 times, Eminem did not have any beef with the Superman star or any incident that would perpetuate the idea as such," "The Things reported. Then, why does Eminem love taking jabs at the actor with no regard for his condition?
As he has been known, Eminem loves provoking reactions, and his Christopher Reeve disses were one such tactic that left people shocked. Besides, the irony of the star’s life—who once played the greatest superhero becoming a cripple—reportedly appealed to the rapper. The rhyming factor was another reason he consistently name-dropped the actor.
Subject to much criticism for his insensitive lyrics, Eminem even addressed the matter in his 2000 track, I’m Back. The song’s lyrics mocked people for being “so sensitive” and called Reeve a “touchy subject” that shouldn’t be joked about.
Other tracks that mention Reeve include Who Knew, Purple Pills, Medicine Ball, My 1st Single, Rap City Freestyle ft. Big Tigger, and most recently, Brand New Dance.
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