Bad Meets Evil (Eminem and Royce Da 5’9″), ‘A Kiss’ – Song Review

Eminem revives his Slim Shady persona and disses Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Justin Bieber on the new song 'A Kiss,' performed by Bad Meets Evil, Em's rap duo with Royce Da 5'9".

The track features the twinkle of chimes and a female voice cooing the hook, "I want a kiss, a kiss, a kiss." Both are misleading, because this is hardly a love song. In fact, the lyrics are some of the most misogynistic of Eminem's career. He declares, "I already ran over two hoes and I ain't out up the f----ing driveway yet" and asks, "If you ain't sucking a d----, why you sitting there with puckered lips?"

Royce goes even further. After calling himself "the first rapper that shot a fan," he says, "This b---- sucking my d--- today, call her yesterday's news tomorrow," and tells his unfortunate female companion, "You should be suffering, you should be cooking / You should be buckling your seatbelt with oven mitts."

Like in the good old days, Eminem gets in a few mentions of other pop stars:

"Aw, hell Shady, he'll tell her like it is / So tell Katy Perry he's on her tail, he's tailgating / These bells are my mating call, and I'm here, bell's waiting / And tell Lady Gaga she can quit her job at the post office / She's still a male lady / Wouldn't f--- her with her d--- / You heard it, the verdict's in / He's allergic to divas, he'd take meat cleavers to 'em / He don't give a damn about Bieber doin'."

While haters may wonder why Eminem still feels the need to mock other singers, it's pretty clear Marshall is reviving his most outlandish rap persona for ironic purposes. He understands how ridiculous it is for a 38-year-old to rap about "making fake farts with my armpits," and he's in on the joke.

'A Kiss' reveals the classic dilemma shown in Slim Shady's best work -- he's crude and inappropriate, but also creative and funny. Lyrically repulsive but musically engaging, the song almost forces you to acknowledge its artistic merits, against your better judgment.

'A Kiss' appears on the Bad Meets Evil EP, 'Hell: The Sequel,' which drops June 14 and also contains the unlikely Bruno Mars collaboration 'Lighters.'

Listen to Eminem and Royce Da 5'9", 'A Kiss'