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My Mom
Eminem
Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis
32
End
193
Internal
74
Multi
255
Slant
9
Chain
Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight
[Chorus]
My mom loved✦ Valium✦ and lots of drugs
That's why I am like I am 'cause I'm like her
Because✦ my mom loved✦ Valium✦ and lots of drugs
That's why I'm on what I'm on 'cause I'm my mom
[Verse 2]
Wait a minute,✦ this ain't dinner,✦ this is paint thinner
"You ate it yesterday, I ain't hear no complaints, did I?
Now here's✦ a plate full of painkillers, now just wait
'Til I crush the Valium✦ and put it in your potatoes
You little motherfucker, I'll make you sit there and make
That retarded fuckin'✦ face without✦ even✦ tastin'✦ it
You better✦ lick the fuckin'✦ plate, you ain't wastin'✦ it
Put your face in it 'fore I throw you in the basement again✦
And I ain't givin'✦ in, you're gonna✦ just sit there
In one fuckin'✦ place, finnickin' 'til next Thanksgiving
And if you still ain't finished it, I'll use the same shit again✦
Then when I make spinach✦ dip, it'll be placed✦ in the shit
You little shit, wanna✦ sit there and play innocent?
A rack fell and hit me in K-Mart and they witnessed it
Child support, your father,✦ he ain't sent the shit
And so what if he did? It's none of your dang business, kid"
[Pre-Chorus]
My mom
There's✦ no one else quite like my mom
I know I should let bygones✦ be bygones✦
But she's the reason why I am high on what I'm high on, 'cause—
[Chorus]
My mom loved✦ Valium✦ and lots of drugs
That's why I am like I am 'cause I'm like her
Because✦ my mom loved✦ Valium✦ and lots of drugs
That's why I'm on what I'm on 'cause I'm my mom
[Bridge]
My mom loved✦ Valium,✦ now all I am
Is a party✦ animal, I am what I am
But I'm strong to the finish with me Valium✦ spinach✦
But my buzz only✦ lasts about✦ two minutes
But I don't wanna✦ swallow it without✦ chewin'✦ it
I can't even✦ write a rhyme without✦ you in it
My Valium,✦ my Vaa-lium, ohh
[Verse 3]
Man, I never✦ thought that I could ever✦ be
A drug addict, naw, fuck that, I can't have it happen✦ to me
But that's actually what has ended✦ up happenin'
A tragedy, the fuckin'✦ past ended✦ up catchin' me
And it's probably where I got acquainted with the taste, ain't it?
Pharmaceuticals are the bomb, Mom, beautiful
She killed✦ the fuckin'✦ dog with the medicine she done fed it
Feed it a fuckin'✦ aspirin and say that it has a headache
"Here, want a snack? You hungry,✦ you fuckin'✦ brat?
Look at that, it's a Xanax, take it and take a nap, eat it"
But I don't need it, "Well fuck it then, break it up
Take a little piece and beat it before✦ you wake Nathan✦ up"
Alright, ma, you win, I don't feel like arguin'✦
I'll do it, pop it, gobble it, and start wobblin'
Stumble, hobble, tumble, slip, trip, then I fall in bed
With a bottle of meds and a Heath Ledger✦ bobblehead
[Chorus]
My mom loved✦ Valium✦ and lots of drugs
That's why I am like I am 'cause I'm like her
Because✦ my mom loved✦ Valium✦ and lots of drugs
That's why I'm on what I'm on 'cause I'm my mom
[Outro]
My mom, I'm just like her
My mom, my mom, my mom
My mom, my mom, my mom
My mom, my mom, my mom
My mom, my momma✦
Me momma,✦ I like-a✦ da momma✦
Haha,✦ sorry✦ Mom
I still love you though
Dr. Dre, 2010
Hey, this shit is hella✦ hard, homie
Yo, take us on outta✦ here
Woo
Technical Breakdown
8.5
Multisyllabic Rhymes8.5
Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)
Internal Rhymes9.5
Rhymes within a line (data-driven)
Wordplay / Double Entendres7.5
Clever language, metaphors, punchlines
Cadence / Rhythm9.0
Flow variation and timing (data-driven)
Vocabulary Complexity6.0
Range and depth of words used (data-driven)
Delivery / Breath Control9.0
Performance and control
Computed Score8.53
Production
— Dr. DreBe the first to rate the production
Critic Analysis
RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™
The verse utilizes extreme internal multisyllabic rhyming structures to mirror the manic, toxic household environment described, using phonetic repetition to force the listener into a claustrophobic, rhythmically trapped state.
A
8.5
Multisyllabic
9.5
Internal Rhymes
9
Cadence / Flow
6
Vocabulary
7.5
Wordplay
9
Delivery
Polysyllabic rhymingInternal rhyme chainsPhonetic mirroringCharacter-driven cadence
Rhyme Architecture: Dense, continuous multisyllabic scheme utilizing 'ai-uh' and 'in-ih' vowel clusters, maintaining internal rhyme velocity across almost every rhythmic interval.
Verified Doubles & Entendres
"I'm on what I'm on 'cause I'm my mom"
① I am currently under the influence of the same substances my mother was.② I am a product of my mother's actions and psychological state, repeating her cycle.
"this ain't dinner, this is paint thinner"
① Literal identification of the toxic substance being fed to the child.② A subversion of the maternal role where the sustainer of life (dinner) is replaced by a poisoner (paint thinner).
"I'll make you sit there and make / That retarded fuckin' face without even tastin' it"
① Forcing the child to endure the physical sensation of the drugs.② A linguistic metaphor for the forced assimilation of the mother's trauma and substance abuse.
Unmatched rhythmic density and command of internal pocket
Effective use of character persona to justify vocal shifts
Aggressive, consistent rhyme scheme that avoids breaking flow
Lyricism leans toward shock value over thematic subtext
Vocabulary is relatively colloquial, lacking metaphorical abstraction