The Conversation (0)
Harry Fletcher
Sep 28, 2022
Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story trailer
Netflix
Since the arrival of Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story on Netflix, people have been reanalysing the crimes of the prolific serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and references to him in pop culture.
Monster stars Mare of Easttown actor Evan Peters as the man also known as the “Milwaukee Cannibal” or the “Milwaukee Monster”, who committed the murders and dismemberments of 17 men and boys between 1978 and 1991.
Now, people on social media have been reevaluating the Katy Perry song ‘Dark Horse’, with some accusing the song's lyrics of being ‘disrespectful’ for ‘romanticising’ Dahmer.
The song, which was released in 2013, featured Juicy J. One of the verses from the rapper features the lyrics: “She's a beast/ I call her Karma/ She eats your heart like Jeffrey Dahmer."
The track is almost a decade old, but the Netflix series has led to widespread discussion of Dahmer’s crimes – and social media users have subsequently been criticising the song.
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Katy Perry - Dark Horse (Official) ft. Juicy Jwww.youtube.com
Since the series arrived on Netflix on 22 September, ‘Dark Horse’ has come in for criticism online.
“It still upsets me when I hear the line in the song Dark Horse ‘She eats your heart out like Jeffrey Dahmer’ and I always make my daughter turn the station. It's so disrespectful to the [victims’] families. I hope people remember them while watching Netflix. Sorry for their losses,” one wrote.
\u201cwhy isn\u2019t anyone calling out Katy Perry for allowing such a vile & terrible lyric to be included in one of her hit songs? Jeffrey was a notorious serial killer & Katy CHOSE to romanticize his criminal & inhumane actions. I actually feel sick to my stomach. She NEEDS to apologize.\u201d— j (@j) 1664172413
\u201cIt still upsets me when I hear the line in the song Dark Horse "She eats your heart out like Jeffrey Dahmer" and I always make my daughter turn the station. It's so disrespectful to the victims families. I hope people remember them while watching Netflix. Sorry for their losses.\u201d— Jennifer (@Jennifer) 1663776418
\u201cKaty Perry and Juicy J literally sang a song saying \u201cshe eats your heart out like Jeffrey Dahmer\u201d which i find disrespectful asf to the families\u201d— andrea (@andrea) 1664232735
Another user said: "I didn’t know who Jeffrey Dahmer was until last week but now knowing what he did, Juicy J is sick for making people especially little kids sing that man’s name and Katy Perry is also sick for allowing that lyric in her song."
"Katy Perry and Juicy J literally sang a song saying ‘she eats your heart out like Jeffrey Dahmer’ which i find disrespectful asf to the families," one more said.
Other artists have also been criticised on social media for referencing Dahmer in their songs, with the likes of Kesha, Eminem and Marilyn Manson referencing him in the lyrics of previous tracks.
Indy100 has reached out to Katy Perry for comment.
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