Eminem dropped his 12th album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce), on Friday, taking shots at notable figures like Sean “Diddy” Combs and Alec Baldwin.
In the ninth track, “Fuel,” Eminem and fellow rapper J.I.D address current cultural controversies, including multiple sexual assault allegations against Combs and the tragic death of Halyna Hutchins on the Rust set when a revolver handled by Baldwin discharged.
In Eminem’s second verse, he raps: “I’m like a R-A-P-E-R (Yeah) / Got so many S-As (S-As), S-As (Huh) / Wait, he didn’t just spell the word, ‘Rapper’ and leave out a P, did he? (Yep).” The lyrics “P, did he?” audibly sound like “P. Diddy.”
“Dead in the Trunk of a Car” Over Magazine Cover
Eminem pays homage to Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur while hinting at the claims that Combs offered $1 million to Tupac’s alleged murderer, Duane Keith “Keffe D” Davis, with the lyrics: “R.I.P., rest in peace, Biggie / And Pac, both of y’all should be living (Yep) / But I ain’t tryna beef with him (Nope) / ‘Cause he might put a hit on me like Keefe D did him.”
He also addresses the Rust tragedy with: “Fuck around and get popped like Halyna Hutchins / Like I’m Alec Baldwin, what I mean is buckin’ you down, coup de grâce then.”
In another track, “Antichrist,” Eminem references a disturbing video released earlier this year showing Combs assaulting ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in 2016. The lyrics highlight the violent incident: “Next idiot ask me is gettin’ his ass beat worse than Diddy did / But on the real, though / She prolly ran out the room with his fuckin’ dildo / He tried to field goal punt her, she said to chill / Now put it back in my ass and get the steel toe.”
The album release coincides with former Vibe editor-in-chief Danyel Smith’s op-ed in The New York Times Magazine, claiming Combs threatened her life over a magazine cover. Additionally, a judge dismissed Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter trial for the shooting of Hutchins in New Mexico on the same day.