Maybe that’s what happens when a tornado meets a volcano
July 16, 2010
So, it was in the car on the way back from Hyannis after July 4th weekend with my friend Kate that I first heard this new Eminem song featuring Rihanna, “Love the Way You Lie.”
(Photo via MTV.com)
My first listen was, as is typical in a first listen, a cursory one in which my brain registered that it liked the song. I didn’t think much more about it than to catalog it in my mental “songs to download” list.
Later that week, once internet was restored to my apartment after a two week outtage (a painful two weeks it was), I logged into iTunes and downloaded the song. It’s been hard not to listen to the tune on repeat.
The more I listen to this song though, the more conflicted I feel about it.
Rihanna and Eminem work together because they accord to Newton’s Third Law that “for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Eminem’s aggressive voice and violent lyrics are perfectly countered by Rihanna’s sweet sound and audible naivete. And, of course, it helps that it’s not much of a stretch for Rihanna to play the role of the beaten but still loving companion, here.
This is not the first time that I’ve liked an Eminem song and yet felt uncomfortable by it. “Stan” from his 2000 album “The Marshall Mathers LP,” was similarly enjoyable and disquieting as “Love the Way You Lie” is. Eminem is a master at making his listener (and I’d imagine his love conquests) feel both connected and fearful at the same time. Is this his M.O. or did he happen upon a formula that worked early in his career and is now simply sticking with it?
Perhaps this is not a deliberate end goal for Eminem and is instead an organic product given off by the interplay of his internal demons. If that’s the case, then it may well be that Eminem really is the tortured creature that he purports to be…which makes his music even more chilling and makes me feel less lame for being made so uncomfortable by it. I still like the song though.
To listen, click here.
-R
