Eminem New Album 2013 Review: Slim Shady Slammed for Gay Slurs on 'Marshall Mathers LP 2'

On November 5, Eminem dropped his long awaited and highly anticipated eighth studio album, "Marshall Mathers LP 2."  While the record was met with high esteem from his fan base, critics were less tolerant of the rapper's use of controversial anti-gay lyrics that helped raise his celebrity in the 90's and 2000's.

In a recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine, the 41-year-old veteran rapper opened up about using slurs against gay people in his rhymes.

"I poke fun at other people, myself," he said adding, "But the real me sitting here right now talking to you has no issues with gay, straight, transgender, at all."

Although the rapper let out a swamp of gay epithets in his new song "Rap God" off of MMLP2, he defended his choice of words, explaining that he is not purposely trying to bash gays. "I don't know how to say this without saying it how I've said it a million times," he said. "But that word, those kind of words, when I came up battle-rappin' or whatever, I never really equated those words..."

To being a homosexual, asked Rolling Stone writer Brian Hiatt?

"Yeah," he said. "It was more like calling someone a b**ch or a punk or a**hole. 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."

USA Today's Edna Gundersen also expressed disdain for Eminem reverting back to old tricks.

"On 'The Marshall Mathers LP 2,' he recaptures the original release's wild, clever, emotional brilliance in a flurry of caustic, brazenly honest, rapid-fire rhymes and aggressive beats. So what's the problem? Once the bravest visionary in rap's underworld, Eminem spends much of 'MMLP2' gazing into the past, reworking early tricks and wading in nostalgia rather than forging a fresh path," wrote Gundersen.