Eminem made an appearance in The D.O.C.’s 2022 documentary, and one clip went viral of him speedily rapping lyrics from the West Coast rapper. Four years later, Merriam-Webster shrewdly used the clip of Em on Thursday (Aug. 6) to define the difference between The D.O.C. and homophones such as dock and doc.
Merriam-Webster posted on X using emojis to define “doc” as a document, “dock” as in where ships can anchor next to, “Doc” as in doctor, finally followed by the West Coast rapper’s documentary clip featuring Slim Shady for “The D.O.C. =.”
“He was doing things that nobody had done yet, like, just lyrically,” Em credits D.O.C. in the clip in M-W’s post. The Detroit icon then raps bars from The D.O.C.’s 1989 “Mind Blowin’” a cappella.
“I would’ve been down with Rock, but I’d be broke/ By the punk, I’m openin’ up my trunk/ To reveal, death, livin’ it up, my life is like a story/ Yellin’ it, ‘cause nobody else is tellin’ it/ Checkin’ it, always gettin’ paid ‘cause the rap is sort of a twist,” Em raps in the clip.
At one point, Eminem gets stumped and mixes up a few of D.O.C.’s lyrics and the N.W.A. affiliate joins the segment to help get Em across the finish line. “Never a segment in negative/ ‘Cause I’m employin’ what you’ve been missing,” D.O.C. raps.
“How the f—k did you say that s—t? Goddamn,” Eminem responds to the Death Row Records cofounder’s lyrical wizardry.
The DOC documentary explores the rapper’s rise and November 1989 car accident, which came less than six months after his No One Can Do It Better album. (The LP peaked at No. 20 on the Billboard 200 in September 1989.)
The accident forever changed the trajectory of D.O.C.’s career and his voice, as he couldn’t speak for a month and came back with a much raspier tone. The documentary also explores the rapper weighing the option of undergoing a major medical procedure to reclaim his voice from decades prior.
The D.O.C.’s documentary premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2022, but still hasn’t received an official release on any major streaming services for fans to watch at the moment.
