As he performed the famous “Kill You” track at the Bonnaroo music festival on Saturday, the rapper used “realistic” gunshot sound effects that left some fans terrified as they recalled last year’s deadly mass shooting at a Las Vegas festival, when Stephen Paddock opened fire from a hotel room at the crowd, killing 58 and wounding more than 800 people.
#EMINEM #Bonnaroo GUNSHOT pic.twitter.com/WgIeIH3Ipd
— EMINEM_TOUR_UPDATES (@Eminemreviv1) 10 июня 2018 г.
It appears that a popular YouTube star, 22-year-old Andrea Russett was among those who were traumatized by the effects:
"I hate to be the one to say it, but being someone who suffers from very mild PTSD, it was EXTREMELY irresponsible and distasteful to end songs w the shot gun sound effect. i [sic] have grown up loving Eminem and his music but I was extremely triggered to the point of tears," she wrote in a tweet that has since been deleted.
Less than a year after Vegas and @Eminem thinks it’s a good idea to blast gun shot sfx onstage at a music festival? Bad call on this headliner @bonnaroo. What happened to Radiate Positivity?
— Brad King (@BradKing32) 10 июня 2018 г.
coming from a performing stand point, i get the effect of sound effects on stage, but there’s a certain point that cross’s the line. i’m one of eminem’s number 1 fans but to hear 3 gun shots coming straight from his set had me scared af. not gonna lie. especially in this world…
— M (@macykatemusic) 10 июня 2018 г.
Being at a festival/concert in these current times brings new concerns & fears. Had to leave @Eminem set after 3rd gunshot at @Bonnaroo cuz panic was setting in my section (front pit). Extremely realistic &scary! Would have been good to have a warning before show. #irresponsible
— Cristi Williams (@ShadingLimelite) 10 июня 2018 г.
Do you not get that people have been scared because of gun violence? Hello—Las Vegas? Aurora? Etc.
— 𝒫𝒾𝓃𝓀𝓎 🌸 (@pinkyluvbun) 10 июня 2018 г.
Maybe people who have never been to any of his concerts didn’t know he used sound effects like that. So with all the shootings, some assumed it was another shooting.
Grow a heart.
That's scary. Like someone yelling fire in a crowded venue… but worse
— jess hutch (@jessfrr) 10 июня 2018 г.
Many others, however, defended Eminem, saying that the lion’s share of rappers have used the gunshot sound effects for years:
Eminem scared his audience by using gun shot sound effects during his Bonnaroo set. Police siren sound effects in hip hop have been scaring pot heads in their cars for a decade. Cry me a river.
— Matt Fernandez (@FattMernandez) 10 июня 2018 г.
A large percentage of Rappers have used gun sound effects in concerts since the 90s. This didn’t start with Eminem and dozens of others artists are currently doing the same thing. Travis used them frequently when I just saw him… Why is Eminem suddenly being attacked?
— Cassius Morris (@CassiusMorris) 11 июня 2018 г.
Y'all don't want stricter gun laws but you wanna be mad at Eminem for using gunshot sound effects at a show?🤔ok lmaoooo
— Mugen (@KINGOFTHEEDEAD) 10 июня 2018 г.
I'm not a fan of Eminem, but how can you call yourself a hip-hop fan when you're outraged at him for using "convincing gun sounds" in a song at Bonnaroo when that's something rappers have been doing pretty much since rap started.
— Clinton Anthony (@HoldMySpinach) 11 июня 2018 г.
Y’all are soft! Don’t go to a Childish Gambino concert either this is America has gunshot sounds in it. The stage lights also had an effect with gun shot sounds. Literally showing you it was apart of the performance
— J’Nâhshön (@jmetcalf123) 10 июня 2018 г.
Perhaps the anger should be directed to the folks who allow guns to be the root cause of the fear and violence rather than an artist who is making a statement through the music?
— x — RG (@RichersGhost) 10 июня 2018 г.
Meanwhile, Eminem’s manager Paul Rosenberg took to Instagram to dispel the rumors about gunshot sound effects, explaining that the artist used a pyrotechnic concussion that created a “loud boom.”
In March, the rap artist broke into an explicit freestyle rap blasting the National Rifle Association (NRA) with the message “They love guns more than our children,” during his iHeartRadio performance at the Forum in Inglewood, California.
