On Mother's Day, Eminem Drops Video For Nicer Song About His Mom
DETROIT (CBS Detroit) - Eminem apologizes to his mom in one of his latest songs...sort of.
On Mother's Day, fittingly, the Detroit-native artist released the official Spike Lee-directed music video for "Headlights" — shot on location in metro Detroit.
The video was listed a top trending item on Facebook on Sunday.
"Mom, I know I let you down," writes the rapper, whose real name is Marshall Mathers. "I went in headfirst; Never thinking about who what I said hurt, in what verse; My mom probably got it the worst; The brunt of it, but as stubborn as we are. Did I take it too far? Cleaning out my closet and all them other songs; But regardless I don't hate you cause ma! You're still beautiful to me, cause you're my mom."
That all sounds pretty nice, but when it's followed by lyrics comparing his upbringing to "Vietnam", "Desert Storm", "chemical warfare" — and accusing her of kicking him out in the cold on Christmas Eve — we're not sure if Mrs. Mathers-Nelson will be adding the track to her playlist anytime soon.
Mathers goes on to say that he realizes his mother is sick, that it can't be changed, and he still hates that they're estranged.
[Check out the video, which includes explicit lyrics, HERE]
Though it's not quite a love song, "Headlights" is a far cry from "Cleaning Out My Closet" (mentioned by Mathers in lyrics cited above) in which the rapper writes about his mother "popping prescription pills in the kitchen," making him believe he was sick, causing "Munchausen syndrome," and generally mistreating him as a child. In the video for that track, a young blond boy is seen hiding from his mother under his bed before she drags him out, struggling.
In another older song, "My Mom," the rapper blames his mother for his addition problems, saying she "loved Valium and lots of drugs," and hid drugs in his food, serving him, "a plate full of pain killers."
In a documentary released last year, Mathers opened up about his past struggles with prescription drugs, admitting Vicodin almost killed him.
