“Who?”
Eminem was epically shaded by Grindr after the rapper used the gay hook-up app in a meme for the Dolly Parton Challenge.
Last week, Parton created a social media storm when she uploaded a four-photo mosaic of profile photos for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Tinder, which jokes about how differently we present ourselves on each of the platforms.
Thousands of social media users and celebrities joined in, including Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer Garner, Halle Berry, Miley Cyrus and… Eminem, who posted his own version last Friday (24 January) but with Tinder swapped out for Grindr.
“Did I do this right?” he captioned the photo, which was met with confusion from fans and members of the LGBTQ community considering the rapper has repeatedly used homophobic slurs in his music over the years, especially the word ‘f****t’.
“Aren’t you, like, very homophobic?” one Twitter user asked, while another wrote: “Using grindr and gay culture as a meme but use “f*ggot” in a derogatory way in every other song…. chile.”
It didn’t take long for Grindr to issue a response, with the official Twitter account simply responding, “Who?”
In 2017, Eminem made headlines after claiming he used the app, which is primarily for queer men, to find potential partners. In an interview with Vulture, he said: “Well, yeah. Yeah Tinder. And Grindr. I also used to go to strip clubs.”
A representative for the star later told The Muse that he “was joking about using both Tinder and Grindr”.
During the same interview with Vulture, Eminem also defended criticism that his lyrics are misogynistic and homophobic.
“The first time I got a taste of being called anti-gay was on My Name Is when I said, ‘My English teacher wanted to have sex in junior high / The only problem was my English teacher was a guy,’” he explained.
“All I was saying was I don’t swing that way. So when I started getting flack for it, I thought, ‘Alright, you people think I’m homophobic? Watch this.’ Hence the Ken Kaniff character and all that stuff.
“I was trying to push the buttons of people who were calling me something that I wasn’t. The honest-to-God truth is that none of that matters to me: I have no issue with someone’s sexuality, religion, race, none of that.
“Anyone who’s followed my music knows I’m against bullies — that’s why I hate that fucking bully Trump — and I hate the idea that a kid who’s gay might get shit for it.”
Related: Eminem raps “what if I told you I was gay?” on new leaked song.
Related: Troye Sivan criticises Eminem’s use of anti-gay slurs on Kamikaze.
Related: Imagine Dragons’ Dan Reynolds slams Eminem over “hateful” anti-gay lyrics.
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