Eminem, Kim | Controversial Songs

In the 17th edition of Controversial Songs (2025), we explore the controversy behind “Kim” by Academy and Grammy Award-winning rapper Eminem.

Bring on the controversy! Controversial Songs is a column that provides background information and insight into songs that raised eyebrows, stirred the pot, or were banned. The more censorship censor$hit, the better! The records that grace Controversial Songs are old and new alike, with all genres of music welcome.  In the 17^th edition of Controversial Songs (2025), we explore the controversy behind “Kim” by Eminem.

“Baby, you’re so precious, daddy’s so proud of you,” Eminem (Marshall Mathers) asserts in the intro of “Kim”. Aww! The Academy and Grammy Award-winning rapper continues, “Sit down, bitch! You move again, I’ll beat the shit out of you!” Holy shit, that escalated quickly ! In the latter line, Eminem is not addressing his daughter, Haillie, but rather his ex-wife, Kim Scott.  That is just one of many instances he refers to her as a bitch. It’s eyebrow-raising, foul language referencing a woman, particularly the mother of your child. “Kim” is the 16^th track from Eminem’s controversial but critically acclaimed, Grammy-winning 2000 album, The Marshall Mathers LP.  The track runs for over six minutes in duration. Eminem has a lot to say, and it’s not family-friendly! Mathers, Jeff Bass, and Mark Bass wrote “Kim.” F.B.T. produced it.

 To reiterate, “Kim” was written about Mathers’ ex-wife.  Judging by the lyrics of the song, their relationship was a train wreck. “Quit crying, bitch! Why do you always make me shout at you?” Eminem asks Kim in the first verse, continuing, “How could you just leave me and love him out the blue?” Ooh-wee ! By the end of the verse, Em informs Kim, “Come on! We’re going for a ride, bitch! /… We’ll be right back, well, I will, you will be in the trunk.” Gah-day-um, Eminem!  Again, it is hard to keep up with how many times he refers to her as a bitch. In no instance is it appropriate.

There are many reasons why “Kim” is considered controversial. One is simple: he doesn’t change names. Kim Scott was his ex-wife. She’s not disguised here or protected which feels like an asshole move. Eminem, portraying his wild alter ego Slim Shady, doesn’t hold back.  He goes whole hog! The biggest reason why “Kim” is controversial is the lyrics, considered to be misogynistic. The lyrics back that up without question. The unsettling chorus is contradictory:

“So long, bitch, you did me wrong

I don’t wanna go on

Living in this world without you.”

Everyone keeping count of how many times bitch is uttered? A shit-ton. Beyond the first verse and chorus, Eminem continues to be one twisted S.O.B. Cruelly, in the second verse, he raps, “There’s a **** year old little **** / Laying dead with a slit throat in your living room.” Um… Eminem… what did you do, my guy? Notice he self-censored… Backtracking in the same verse, he admits, “You really fucked me, Kim, you really did a number on me / Never knew me cheatin’ on you would come back to haunt me.” Deep stuff…  The third verse is no tamer.  There’s a “double homicide and suicide with no note.” Yikes . Angrily, at the end of the verse, Eminem bites, “Now shut the fuck up, and get what’s comin’ to you / You were supposed to love me / Now bleed, bitch, bleed! Bleed, bitch, bleed! Bleed!” Is there any reason to explain why “Kim” is controversial, as for under consent of the king? It is self-explanatory. To tell you how controversial this song is, in the edited version of The Marshall Mathers LP, “Kim” is nowhere to be found.  It is replaced by a song called “The Kids”.  There was no way they could edit this misogynistic, violent song.  It’s not family-friendly nor for the faint of heart.  Eminem was straight-up savage !

Eminem // The Marshall Mathers LP // Interscope // 2000

Eminem, Kim: Controversial Songs No. 17 (2025) [: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Interscope; Andrea Mosti from Pexels; AcatXlo, OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay; christian buehner on Unsplash]