Mockingbird (Eminem song)

"Mockingbird" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his fifth studio album Encore (2004). It was released as the fifth single from the album in April 2005. It peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number four in Denmark. It received a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Solo Performance. "Mockingbird" was later included on Eminem's greatest hits compilation album Curtain Call: The Hits (2005).

Composition
The song runs for 4 mins 11 secs and is written in the key of E minor, with a tempo of 84 beats per minute, the song follows a chord progression sequence of Em-C-D-Em.

Critical response
Entertainment Weekly's David Browne wrote: "Again he addresses a song to his daughter (Mockingbird) and explains how he's working hard at being a good father." J-23 of HipHopDX praised the song: "Things get a bit better at the end, 'Mockingbird' is another song for Hailie that is most notable for flawless delivery." Steve Jones of USA Today was positive: "The affectionate Mockingbird talks directly to his 9-year-old daughter, Hailie Jade, and 8-year-old niece, Alaina, trying to explain Kim's troubles with the law and his constant travel." James Corne of RapReviews was also satisfied, saying, "Predictably, Eminem lays down one for Hailie with "Mockingbird," but what is not foreseeable is that it actually works." The New York Times was mixed: "the I-love-my-daughter ode 'Mockingbird'" isn't the most exciting thing according to Kelefa Sanneh. Stylus Magazine was negative: "Encore dutifully deploys the obligatory Hailie ode ("Mockingbird")."

The A.V. Club was a bit positive: "On 'Mockingbird,' Eminem lets his hatred of his ex-wife lie dormant just long enough to provide his daughter with a haunting account of how parents sometimes just can't make it work, no matter how much both parties want to." Los Angeles Times also agreed: "In the tender 'Mockingbird,' the Detroit-based rapper outlines his devotion to his daughter, Hailie. Against a restrained, almost hypnotic musical backdrop, Eminem tries to help the child make sense of a world in which her father is always on the run because of his career, and her mother, Kim, makes headlines with legal troubles, including a drug arrest last year. Normally, much of Eminem's lure as a rapper is in the speed and authority of his rapid-fire delivery, but he raps here with the gentleness of a man with his arms around his daughter: 'I know it's confusing to you/ Daddy's always on the move/ Mama's always on the news.'" The Austin Chronicle is a bit negative, saying that in the song "he still hates his ... ex-wife as much as he loves his daughter. Yawn." The Boston Phoenix called it "the address-to-his-daughter" song that is "more consistently remarkable than 'Mosh'".

Sampling
Baby Keem's song "Apologize" from his 2019 mixtape Die for My Bitch samples his unique, but well-known flow, using a similar melodic tone as Eminem's "Mockingbird", and Lil Nas X in his pre-chis 2021 album Montero samples "Mockingbird" for the chorus of "Don't Want It"; being similar in word pattern and lyrics.

British Rapper E1 (3x3) released a remix to the song in 2022.

DJs Tiësto, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, and Gabry Ponte released "Mockingbird" in 2024 which interpolates the chorus.

Resurgence
In 2023, after the song garnered massive interest on social networking site TikTok, "Mockingbird" reached 1 billion streams on Spotify and placed on numerous music charts worldwide.

Track listing

 * UK CD1, digital download, German 3" CD single


 * UK CD2


 * Digital EP


 * German CD single


 * Notes
 * $undefined$ signifies an additional producer.