Eminem has used his reissued album Music to Be Murdered By to publicly apologise to Rihanna following the leak of an old rap in which he appeared to side with her abuser Chris Brown.
The seven-second clip, reportedly recorded during sessions for Eminem's 2009 album Relapse, hit headlines last year after it was uploaded online by a Reddit user.
In the leaked footage, the Lose Yourself hitmaker suggests he can understand why Brown lashed out at his then-girlfriend following a pre-Grammys party in 2009, rapping: "I'd side with Chris Brown, I'd beat down a b**ch too" - seemingly referring to Chris and Rihanna's physical altercation.
At the time of the leak, Eminem's representative insisted that the verse was scrapped almost as soon as the rapper had recorded it over a decade ago, and claimed the hip-hop star has a "great relationship" with Rihanna, who has collaborated with him on hits including Love The Way You Lie, and Monster.
Now, on the track Zeus, one of 16 new songs added to the revamped Music to Be Murdered By, Eminem expresses heartfelt remorse for ever uttering the words.
The 48-year-old raps, "But, me, long as I re-promise to be honest, and wholeheartedly, apologies, Rihanna / For that song that leaked, I'm sorry, Ri. It wasn't meant to cause you grief / Regardless, it was wrong of me."
Rihanna has yet to comment on the leaked clip or the song apology.
