Eminem - Mockingbird

Music video analysis of the song Mockingbird by the rap artist Eminem

1. Eminem – Mockingbird (Music Video)
December 2009

Eminem’s music video ‘Mockingbird’ appears to be mainly a compilation of old footage of the artist’s
two children, Hailie and Alaina, and their mother. It is edited to give the impression that Eminem is
watching this old footage and lamenting because he cannot be with them as his career has him on
the move, and their mother is having trouble too, leaving the girls without support. This is reflected
in the lyrics:

“Daddy's always on the move, mamma's always on the news
I try to keep you sheltered from it but somehow it seems
The harder that I try to do that, the more it backfires on me”

This is an unusual representation of an artist from the rap genre, who are not normally as sensitive
and open. However, in this video in particular, Eminem reflects on who he really is as a person and
shows his love for his family.

The narrative events in ‘Mockingbird’ are taken from situations from the artist’s life. At times in the
lyrics, this gets extremely personal to the artist. He refers to his daughters by their names rather
than using second person terms such as ‘you’ or
‘she’, and when he refers to the problems their
mum is facing, the video features actual footage
of her being sentenced after a court case. This
makes the narrative more of an account of
events. Eminem directs his song at his younger
daughter, Hailie. In this way, there is no
narrative enigma, and the lyrics become a lot
more sentimental and meaningful. In essence,
the song is about how Eminem will always do
anything for his daughters no matter what gets in the way because he loves them. Nevertheless, he
says this whilst he is away for his daughters and unable to help them, which makes it more
emotional. His lyrics, although he has been away for a while, suggest that he is right beside his

2. daughters whilst their mother copes with a drug addiction. We can see that in his chorus, in which
he repeats:

“… Stiffen that upper lip up, little lady, I told ya
Daddy's here to hold ya through the night
I know mommy's not here right now and we don't know why…”

The main piece of iconography in the set is the movie projector which shows all the old pieces of
footage being put together which Eminem is watching. It shows the artist reflecting on the past and
watching over the time he has shared with his two daughters. The artist wishes he could ‘project’
himself and be with them but he can’t. This is in the setting of a small crowded room, where the
protagonist is sat on a single-person couch in a dark corner. This setting is used to emphasise the
speaker’s loneliness and isolation. This is also evident in the lyrics where he says:

“Now I'm sitting in this empty house, just reminiscing
Lookin' at your baby pictures, it just trips me out”

The video is cleverly edited with narrative shots which were filmed for the music video in those of
Eminem sat before a movie projector, alongside old footage of the children growing up, also intercut
with scenes from the media in the case of the artist receiving awards and his wife being on the news.
The use of time in the technical editing allows the song to more emotionally reflect the lyrics of
'Mockingbird', as the artist looks back on everything he has been through up to where he is now. The
'throwback' style of his video will appeal in particular to Eminem's existing fanbase who are familiar
with the artist and his growth into who he is now. Those unfamiliar may gain a newfound respect for
him, whereas in the past they may only know him in a negative light, such as the story of his wife's
drug addiction, or as a famous artist, seeing him on the TV, the video builds a third picture of the
artist as a person. In this manner, the video could be said to influence audience reception of
Eminem. The cultural theorist and sociologist Stuart Hall coined his reception theory on the basis
that, after encoding and decoding a text, we take a preferred, negotiated, or oppositional reading
based upon other sociological and environmental factors. With sentiment at the heart of this video,
the viewer is more likely to take a preferred reading as it encourages people to see the human side
of Eminem and sympathise with his situation.