Apparently MTV executives in
New York have been laughing their heads off after Michael Jackson demanded that
their cable channel pull Eminem’s latest video "Just Lose It," where Eminem
mocks several celebrities such as MC Hammer and Pee Wee Herman.
It is unquestionable that he
saves his worst mockery for Jackson.
Eminem appears dressed as the entertainer a number of times, his hair catches
fire, as Jackson’s did during an accident while filming a Pepsi commercial and
later on he looses his nose that gets squashed on a dance floor. This, apparently, has lots of Jackson’s fans
upset.
But the most upsetting part
of the video feature Eminem, again, dressed as the former king of pop, sitting
on the edge of a bed as young boys bounce on the mattress behind him. At one
point in the song, Eminem sings: "Come on, little kiddie, on my lap."
Jackson is still facing charges of child molestation and this part of the video
certainly is not aimed to make him feel better about himself.
"I am very angry at
Eminem’s depiction of me in his video," Jackson told comedian Steve Harvey
on Harvey’s Los Angeles radio show. "I feel that it is outrageous and
disrespectful. It is one thing to spoof, but it is another to be demeaning and
insensitive."
Many critics of Eminem say
that his mockery of other musicians is getting sort of old and not funny. They suggest he looks elsewhere for
inspiration other than pop stairs who are pathetic. It’s just too cheesy to keep pointing out the obvious.
Back to Jackson. So after the video aired, Jackson demanded
that all music cable networks remove "Just Lose It" from their
rotations. Only Black Entertainment Television (BET) has agreed to do so saying
that they have a long relationship with
Jackson and are not interested in making fun of any celebrity on their network.
But neither MTV nor VH1 has any
intention of pulling the video and the video is actually getting more air play
than it should anyway because of the controversy.
Some claim that Eminem is now what Jackson used to be --
arguably the biggest pop star in the world. His Nov. 16 album,
"Encore," is one of the most hotly awaited releases of the year, and
MTV isn’t going to risk alienating Eminem to placate a faded star whose public appearances
these days are basically just his
courtroom arrivals and departures.
Celebrity watchers say that
there was once a time when Jackson had enough power that he probably could have
coerced MTV into yanking a video. But that was ages ago, even before Jackson
announced himself the king of pop.
Which he didn’t have to do since everyone knew it already.
It is interesting that
Jackson practically ”made” MTV what it is right now after making his debut in
1981. Yes, so the fledgling cable
station was already building a devoted following before Jackson released
"Thriller" and redefined pop history but with "Billie
Jean," "Beat It," and "Thriller," Jackson showed that
videos could be lots of fun and could feature dance sequences and costumes that
would inspire generations of teenagers and adults alike.
You know Usher? Have you seen him dance. Heard him sing? Enough said.
But back to Eminemn. MTV
has no obligation to pull Eminem’s video just because it offends Jackson. Eminem videos have offended so many
celebrities that if everyone of them complained than there would be no
Eminem. It is interesting to notice
however that as the current king of pop, Eminem should really pay attention to
Jackson’s story but not because it is funny but because it is tragic.
Why can’t he just… um, stick
to naked instead? The controversial
rapper has been shooting a video in Los Angeles from his next CD, ”Encore” and
apparently he is completely naked in it.
Okay, not completely – he is wearing
shoes and socks… and what seems to be a sock is wrapped around his penis.
People who saw the video say
that Eminem’s physique looks quite buff, but his body is strangely hairless.
Whether or not the nudie footage will make it into the final cut of the video
is apparently still up in the air, but in the meantime, the revealing pics of
Eminem taken during the shoot by UK tabloids have been widely circulated on the
Internet.
But let’s get serious for a
second. According to the sources, Eminem
has been left devastated by the suicide of the uncle he regarded as his father.
Todd Nelson helped to raise
the hip-hop star after his father abandoned him as a child. Nelson shot himself in the head.
It is the second close
relative Eminem has lost in recent years after his other uncle, Ronnie, killed
himself after his girlfriend broke up with him. Sources say, Nelson shot himself because the local sheriff has
been terrorizing him and his family with a vicious dog.
Apparently, Nelson was so
upset over the dog that he went into the backyard, got in a car and blew his
head off. The news of his uncle’s
suicide is the latest tragedy to hit Eminem. Four years ago, his ex-wife, Kim,
attempted to take her own life. Also
Eminem’s mother, Debbie Mathers -- who he has a strained relationship with --
is currently recovering from breast cancer.