I just read this on Wayne's web-site. Don't tell me this is really about Eminem? If it this, then Neil & Chris allow themselves too much!''I hope you don't mind if I go on at some length about this one. This gentle midtempo song evolved from a number that the Boys had previously been working on called "How Lucky I Am." It's written from the viewpoint of an imaginary 18-year-old boy who goes to a rock concert, meets the male star backstage, and ends up going to bed with him. The male star is based on one of contemporary music's most controversial figures, white rap star Eminem. Neil and Chris have often discussed this fact, but even without their acknowledgment there would be ample evidence. For instance, in the narrative of the song the unnamed star wryly asks his smitten fan, "Your name isn't Stan, is it?" "Stan" is the title of one of Eminem's best-known songs—appropriately enough, about an obsessive fan—from which Neil even cops the line "We should be together."
Once again we find the Boys working on multiple levels. Neil and Chris appear to be commenting on an all-too-common phenomenon in the rock music business, in which performers must often adopt a public persona very different from their true selves: their personas are part of the performance. The first tip-off is the fact that the fan is surprised, when he first meets the star, at how polite he is. After all, Eminem and most other rock and rap artists are hardly known for their politeness, at least not as part of their public image. Rather, they must often cultivate a rude, thuggish, and/or irresponsible image in order to maintain their "credibility."
When our young protagonist winds up back in the star's hotel room, where the star suggests they become "secret lovers," he (the fan) ponders aloud why he (the star) is known for being homophobic. Again, the Neil and Chris are suggesting that it's part of the image; gay musicians often hide their true selves and sometimes even adopt a homophobic stance in order to advance their career. Surely the Pet Shop Boys aren't condoning such hypocrisy, but they recognize it as a fact and are here attempting to describe and perhaps explain it.
In terms of the lyrics, Neil does a terrific job of adopting the voice of an 18-year-old; the language he uses is unsophisticated and colloquial, and his viewpoint is rather naive. (He doesn't seem very disturbed at having fallen in love with someone whom he'll almost certainly never see again, at least not in such an intimate context.) He even manages to modify his singing style in such a way that he doesn't sound so much like himself, but rather like the character he portrays.
By the way, I have no idea (and I doubt that Chris and Neil have, either) whether Eminem actually is a closeted gay man. It's fundamentally irrelevant. This song is a fable, a fictional morality tale, in which the character of the star, though based on a particular performer, is clearly not that performer. But beyond the morality tale, this track is also deeply satirical. If Eminem were to take offense at such a depiction of a character so obviously based on him—perhaps even to the point of considering legal action—he should keep in mind that he himself has been subject to lawsuits over his own songs, which he has defended by saying that they, too, are mere satires. The Boys would be able to defend themselves using Eminem's own statements. And I do strongly suspect they're tweaking Eminem for the homophobic statements in his recordings, as if to say, "So, you're into satire? Well, here's some satire for you!"
In summary, it's quite an achievement that Chris and Neil have fashioned a song that is simultaneously so touching, comical, topical, and downright brazen.''
Don't criticize me for discovering this now. I'm newbie her and newbie in PSB world. I started being their fan a year ago so I'm still in progress of becoming PSB freak. You've probably discussed this song much earlier, but I discovered that it might be about Eminem just now so I think I have fine excuse.
P.S.
Did you know that Eminem appearantly heard this song and responded to Neil & Chris in his own song ''Canibitch''
this is Wayne's review of ''Canibitch'':
- what do you think of all this; was this necessary at all for Neil & Chris?''This track reportedly appears on Straight Out the Lab, an "underground EP" of otherwise unreleased raps by Eminem, parts of which have been circulating online. The primary target here of Eminem's bile is rival rapper Canibus—the two have a running feud—but Mr. Mathers can't resist insulting assorted others along the way. At one point during the narrative he and his mentor/cohort Dr. Dre are driving at top speed to Canada, casually running over a few people en route. Among those disposed of in this manner are the Pet Shop Boys, mentioned very briefly in passing (literally). Eminem offers no further comment on our heroes. This of course was inspired by "The Night I Fell in Love"; the Boys probably wouldn't have appeared on Eminem's radar screen otherwise. Neil and Chris surely knew that their song would earn them some sort of recognition, so to speak, in an Eminem rap. They just as surely relished the prospect.''
