“It was a clever line that rhymed and we’d like to leave it at that.”

Amongst Eminem’s snipes at artists like Lil Pump and Lil Xan on his new song “The Ringer” is a reference that some fans may not have caught. Early in the song’s central verse, he spits:

Savage, but ain’t thinkin' ‘bout no bank account

But bitch, I’m off the chain like Kala Brown

Kala Brown is a woman who was found chained up inside a cargo container on the South Carolina property of serial killer Todd Kohlhepp back in November 2016. Authorities later discovered that Brown’s boyfriend Charlie Carver was one of seven people Kohlhepp killed over the course of more than a decade.

In a statement to Spartanburg, South Carolina’s local CBS station WSPA, a spokesperson for Brown reacted to Eminem mentioning her on the song:

Thank you for the concerns; we have seen all of the attention regarding Eminem referencing Kala in one of his newly released songs. At this time, given we fully know and understand Eminem’s style of rap music (it can come off a little unnerving) but she does not want to take offense or feel as if he is attacking her personally. It was a clever line that rhymed and we’d like to leave it at that. Everyone expresses themselves in their own way, and if anything, people will always feel a flash of Kala’s struggle when hearing that line.

Brown was awarded over six million dollars in a lawsuit she brought against Kohlhepp after her rescue. Her captor is now serving seven consecutive life sentences with no possibility of parole.

Eminem has a long history of controversial lyrics, and has referenced headline-grabbing tragedies on several occasions. Most notably, he rapped about the Columbine school shooting on 2000’s “I’m Back,” forcing his label to censor lyrics on the explicit version of The Marshall Mathers LP.

Listen to the song above and read all the lyrics to Eminem’s “The Ringer” on Genius now.