About “Walk on Water”

“Walk on Water” details the struggle Eminem endured during the later half of his career. Since his comeback in 2009, his critics have showed disinterest in Eminem’s presence this time around. Eminem addresses such criticism in a December 2017 interview with Complex, where he states:

I don’t know, that song was more about just self-doubt, insecurities, that kind of shit. I’ve never really seen myself as, how can I say…The way I’ve seen some fans act towards me. Even to this day, I’ve been in this game a long time and it’s still weird to me, because I just rap and I certainly haven’t had a perfect career. I’ve put out some not-so-great albums and I realize that.

The phrase “Walk[ing] on water” is used to express a miraculous display of power, as it originates from Matthew 14:22-33 where it’s told that Jesus literally walked across water to get to a boat filled with his disciples. Ironically, the phrase is used in the song to express the opposite. Though a celebrity as big as Em seemingly “walks on water”, he admits throughout each verse that he isn’t comparable to the godlike figure people think he is.