Eminem‘s “Temporary” and “Somebody Save Me” not only tugged at the heartstrings of fans, but his daughter Hailie Jade herself.
In the latest episode of her Just a Little Shady podcast, 28-year-old Hailie recalled her emotional reaction to the heart-rending Death of Slim Shady album cuts, which are dedicated to her and her two siblings.
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Em’s eldest child admitted that she “sobbed” at the recently released “Somebody Save Me” music video and “refuses” to watch it again because of how painful it is.
“I watched it in entirety and I don’t think I can do it again. I definitely cry everytime I hear it at all,” she said. “Between that and ‘Temporary’ … I mean, I can’t. I audibly sobbed I think for both songs, but especially ‘Temporary.’
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“Watching the [‘Somebody Save Me’] video back and listening to the songs, I feel like my parents did such a good job growing up where I didn’t realize how bad things were. But now, as an adult in hindsight, it’s so scary to think about.”
Beginning to choke up at the thought of losing her rap star father to drugs, she added: “I think that’s why I get emotional so much just thinking that that could have happened. And obviously that’s the point of the song. But I will say, if you’ve ever lost an addict or loved one, I feel for you.”
Lightening the mood of the conversation, Hailie then said it was “fun” to watch old footage of herself and her family in the “Somebody Save Me” video, despite the otherwise heavy theme of the clip.
However, she also admitted that she struggles to listen to Eminem’s 2004 song “Mockingbird” without crying, adding: “The older I get, the less I can listen to any of the songs. I’ve done enough crying and I told myself I refuse.”
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Released earlier this week, the video for “Somebody Saves Me” centers around Eminem reliving his biggest regrets as a parent.
The anguished clip shows him replaying old family footage from behind a glass screen, even watching younger versions of himself in the throes of his drug addiction and attempting to intervene.
One particularly powerful scene imagines Em’s three children saying their final goodbyes at his funeral as he raps: “Right now, I’m just weak / As I fall further down in this deep hole / And farther in the ground that I sink / As they lower me in my coffin, I feel the tears all fallin’ down on my cheek.”
Equally as moving, “Temporary” serves as a tear-jerking ode to Hailie Jade and even features her vocals in the form of childhood recordings.
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Also featuring frequent collaborator Skylar Grey on the hook, the song is intended for Hailie to listen to after Eminem has passed away, with lyrics such as: “So Hailie Jade, I wrote you this song / To help you cope with life now that I’m gone.”
Em also urges his eldest daughter to take care of her siblings and her uncle when he’s no longer around: “Look after Alaina, Stevie and Uncle Nate / And sweetie, be strong, I know I was your rock.”
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The rapper’s voice even breaks slightly when he says the next line: “And I still am, saying goodbye is just not / Ever easy, why you crying? Just stop.”
At the end of the song, Eminem admits that “Temporary” is “the hardest thing I ever wrote.”
