Stronger Than I Was

Album: The Marshall Mathers LP 2 (2013)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song finds Eminem rap-singing from the perspective of his ex-wife Kim Mathers, whom he was with as recently as 2006. They had a very volatile on-off relationship and Em poured scorn at her on several of his songs, including the Marshall Mathers LP track "Kim," where he fantasized about killing her.
  • The lyric, "Uh, we were Bonnie and Clyde. No, on the inside you were Jekyll and Hyde," refers to The Slim Shady LP track, "'97 Bonnie & Clyde" where Eminem raps about after violently murdering Kim, taking his daughter Hailie to the beach to dispose of her body.
  • According to some reports, the song is about Eminem's "Love The Way You Lie" collaborator, Rihanna. TMZ claimed that the pair fell in love in 2010 after recording that song.

Comments: 2

  • GraceI absolutely adore EM's voice, this song perfectly shows how beautiful and talented he is, one of my favorites even though it makes me so sad! He deserves the world
  • Rochelle from 60660A lot of people forget how lyrically gifted eminem is, because we are so used to his fast rapping. This shows his actual talents as a singer.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

90210 to Buffy to Glee: How Songs Transformed TV

90210 to Buffy to Glee: How Songs Transformed TVSong Writing

Shows like Dawson's Creek, Grey's Anatomy and Buffy the Vampire Slayer changed the way songs were heard on TV, and produced some hits in the process.

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat WorldSongwriter Interviews

Jim talks about the impact of "The Middle" and uses a tree metaphor to describe his songwriting philosophy.

Richie McDonald of Lonestar

Richie McDonald of LonestarSongwriter Interviews

Richie talks about the impact of "Amazed," and how his 4-year-old son inspired another Lonestar hit.

How "A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss" Became Rock's Top Proverb

How "A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss" Became Rock's Top ProverbSong Writing

How a country weeper and a blues number made "rolling stone" the most popular phrase in rock.

Dick Wagner (Alice Cooper/Lou Reed)

Dick Wagner (Alice Cooper/Lou Reed)Songwriter Interviews

The co-writer/guitarist on many Alice Cooper hits, Dick was also Lou Reed's axeman on the Rock n' Roll Animal album.

U2

U2Fact or Fiction

How did The Edge get his name? Did they name a song after a Tolkien book? And who is "Angel of Harlem" about?