Last week, Eminem released “Houdini,” the first single from his upcoming album The Death Of Slim Shady (Coup de grâce). The track, which revives the trollish persona for comedic effect, wasn’t as well-received by some rap fans online due to its treatment of some of its subjects, but that isn’t stopping the hardcore Eminem faithful from giving it strong streaming numbers. Are those numbers enough to pull it to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for the sixth No. 1 hit of his career?
According to Forbes (for some reason), many of the predictors of such things point to at least a top 5 showing for the self-declared Rap God, with social media accounts like Talk Of The Charts billing it for as high as a No. 2 debut. However, even the might of Eminem’s army of loyalists is meager when compared to the onslaught of support from country fans and the pop appeal of Post Malone. His country-leaning new single “I Had Some Help” with resurgent crooner Morgan Wallen is trending toward yet another appearance at No. 1.
It’s kind of ironic, when you consider the accusations of cultural appropriation that have been leveled at both artists, that it’s Post Malone, who upsets Eminem — and with a non-hip-hop song, no less.
You can check out the video for Eminem’s “Houdini” above.