Eminem fans now have even more reason to see Bodied, the upcoming battle rap comedy the emcee produced. According to a report from The Hollywood Reporter, Eminem will contribute "a number" of songs to the movie's soundtrack, while his mentor, Dr. Dre, has also been tapped for a "couple" of songs. It's unclear whether the two will be working together on any of the material.
The Joseph Kahn-directed film just premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival this weekend, but did not feature new music, which will likely be added after the film is bought and ready for distribution.
Kahn has described the film as a comment on free speech, telling The Hollywood Reporter, "In battle rap, people would say the meanest, craziest, most racist things, and then they would get a beer together, and they would be friends. I wanted to explore that in a movie...The battle rap world is an underground message of free speech. But the film doesn’t automatically take the side of free speech because there’s still the question that we’re asking: ‘Is there a limit to it?’ It’s a legitimate question." He showed Eminem a rough cut of the film and the rapper was immediately impressed. "He watched the movie and loved it."
Eminem was criticized for his use of homophobic slurs in his 2013 song "Rap God," which he defended by pointing to battle rap culture.
“It was more like calling someone a bitch or a punk or asshole,” he told Rolling Stone of his use of the slur. “So that word was just thrown around so freely back then. It goes back to that battle, back and forth in my head, of wanting to feel free to say what I want to say, and then [worrying about] what may or may not affect people... Not saying it’s wrong or it’s right, but at this point in my career – man, I say so much shit that’s tongue-in-cheek. I poke fun at other people, myself. But the real me sitting here right now talking to you has no issues with gay, straight, transgender, at all. I’m glad we live in a time where it’s really starting to feel like people can live their lives and express themselves. And I don’t know how else to say this, I still look at myself the same way that I did when I was battling and broke.”
In July, it was reported that Dr. Dre was working on music for a new Eminem album. Another report stated that Em was expected to release his 9th studio album this fall. There has been no official announcement up to this point.
