Kendrick Lamar’s perceived victory in the Drake beef, capped off with a “Not Like Us” music video, has many fans rearranging their top battle rappers list. Now that Kendrick officially has a lyrical showdown under his belt -– in fact, the biggest since Jay-Z and Nas -– we can compare him to some other mic-killers in the hip-hop world. Of course, there’s one name that people might immediately go to when it comes to technical proficiency, disrespectful disses, and a pretty unchallenged track record, and that’s none other than Detroit’s own Eminem. While most of his opponents aren’t at his level, he does have an impressive history with battle rap and a whole lot of experience.
To be fair, so does Kendrick Lamar when it comes to his previous stints as a battle rapper way earlier in his career. Also, there are plenty of other names to consider in this debate: Pusha T, the aforementioned Esco and Hov, Lupe Fiasco, and legends in their prime like Tupac Shakur and Ice Cube. But Eminem is probably the most popular and prominent example of this. Some fans think that Slim Shady’s experience will get him the upper hand, whereas others posit that K.Dot proved he could go as far as he wanted to with pretty much anyone, and has the strategic approaches to do so.
Eminem Fans Are Doubtful That Kendrick Lamar Could Beat Him In A Rap Battle, And Others Disagree
In fact, there’s a chance (albeit a very, very small one) that we might actually see this hypothetical battle take place one day. We doubt it, though. After all, Eminem and Kendrick Lamar are two Dr. Dre proteges, former collaborators, and 2022 Super Bowl halftime show performers: we know there’s no beef. Yet Marshall Mathers was talking a whole lot of smack about being the best MC on his new single “Tobey.” Many thought that he was dissing Jay-Z, but Royce Da 5’9″ shut this rumor down. If Kendrick and Em are really up to the challenge with these new proclamations on both sides, check out some more fan debates below for what could be the result.
More Fans Debate Slim Shady Versus K.Dot
Meanwhile, we know that Eminem has very high praise for Kendrick Lamar, and vice versa. As such, if they actually do spar lyrically, we know that it wouldn’t be a beef-driven situation, just a “friendly fade.” Still, considering the weight of their diss material and their prowess as artists, it would be an amazing feat to witness and a fantastic display. Maybe they should consider another collaboration and push each other to their limits, instead.
Eminem’s new song “Tobey” featuring BabyTron and Big Sean caused quite the commotion this week, building up hype for The Death Of Slim Shady and turning over detractors of the last single, “Houdini.” However, one particular set of bars had some fans thinking that Marshall Mathers was aiming for Jay-Z’s neck. “Ain’t feelin’ your top five favorite rappers / So I know they about to be pissed at me / But this, to me, is a mystery / How rappers I’ve already ripped could be higher up on a list than me?” he raps on the cut. Billboard and VIBE ranked Em as the fifth best MC of all time in their list of the 50 best rappers last year to celebrate 50 years of hip-hop history around the five-decade anniversary of the art form and culture’s inception.
Hov landed at number one, followed by Kendrick Lamar at two, Nas at three, and Tupac Shakur at four. Given all this, many interpreted Eminem’s lyrics as a possible Jay-Z diss, but according to Royce Da 5’9″‘s response to a curious commenter on Instagram, that’s all cap. “You not gonna answer this but…. They saying Em was throwing a shot at Jay in that Tobey joint. Is that true??” the fan asked. “Of course not,” Royce responded concerning his Bad Meets Evil partner, and we all know that Slim Shady has no qualms about rap beef.
Royce Da 5’9″ Dismisses Rumors That Eminem Dissed Jay-Z
As such, maybe these lyrics are combative, or maybe fans are just reaching here. Either way, it’s hard not to think of Eminem and Jay-Z’s collab “Renegade,” on which Nas famously said that Em “murdered” the Roc Nation boss during his beef with Jay. Perhaps this is what the Detroit spitter referred to with “ripping” other rappers. Either way, we might never know for sure.
Meanwhile, it looks like there are even rappers in Eminem’s city who might take issue with this GOAT stance. “Numbers wise, Eminem is the best Detroit rapper but the gag is nobody would say that in Detroit,” Skilla Baby recently posited. “Everybody had a turn being Detroit’s favorite rapper. Numbers wise, it’s Eminem but nobody in Detroit is playing Eminem right now and I was an Eminem fan as a kid. I’m a fan of Eminem but do we consider him our best rapper? I don’t think Detroit does.”
When Benzino’s recent diss tracks against Eminem came out, these being “Rap Elvis” and “Vulturius,” some fans noted some possible similarities between their writing and that of other MCs. Namely, one Twitter user believes that he actually used a ghostwriter, this being Philly MC Cassidy. “Anyone with a good rap ear can hear the Same flow patterns, internal rhyme style & his flips on the same word is SOOO Cassidy,” they expressed on the social media platform. “Cass either ghostwrote or Benzino just bit his whole style. Eminem Won.” Now, we have a new response to account for from this alleged ghostwriter.
Furthermore, Cassidy spoke on the matter in a new song snippet he shared to his Instagram account on Monday (March 25). “I ain’t ghostwrite Benzino diss, that’s bogus / In the past, I ghostwrote for the writer that ghostwrote it,” he spits on the cut. What’s more is that this adds to the former Source magazine co-owner’s own denials of using ghostwriters. “I don’t wanna hear that ghostwriter s**t,” he remarked on IG Live earlier this year. “This is hip-hop, bro. I don’t wanna hear that ghostwriter s**t. Shut the f**k up, bro. You mad because I’m spitting, I wrote that s**t.” But the 58-year-old admitted to getting help for writing, so maybe this is enough of a nail in the coffin.
“I ate his s**t up,” Benzino claimed during this live session. “I cooked him. Back in the day, he cooked me. But what you Stans is not gonna do, what you teens is not gonna try to do is come here and be like I didn’t affect him. Stop it. Because that shows that y’all ain’t real hip-hop fans. That shows that y’all are biased and probably halfway racist.
“If it’s dope s**t, give it up,” he concluded. “Just like my people give it up to him. Stop being racist, white people. If it’s dope and I rip, then say it. A lot of you guys already are. Salute to the stans that are in my DM saying, ‘Listen ‘Zino, I’m an Em fan but that song is dope.’” For more news and the latest updates on Cassidy, Benzino, and Eminem, keep checking in with HNHH.
Looks like the Eminem and Benzino’s feud will never, ever slow down, even if the former gets emotional over it every once in a while. Moreover, for those unaware, this beef reignited after Em’s diss against The Source‘s former executive on “Doomsday Pt. 2,” leading to some lyrical back-and-forths. On Friday (February 23), Benzino took yet another shot by posting Marshall Mathers in his full Britney Spears cosplay get-up for his “The Real Slim Shady” music video from 2000. Of course, this is a pretty old image and decision to make fun of in 2024, and also follows bizarre moments in which he seems to regret the whole thing and emotionally crumble because of it.
“This is your rap God huh?” Benzino captioned his latest takedown of Eminem. “Y’all can have him, he even got the white stockings pulled up to thighs. SMH s**t is ridiculous, and no this ain’t Ai.” Furthermore, this comes after he went on Drink Champs to talk about the whole situation and its current status. During the talk, the 58-year-old broke down amid overwhelmed feelings about the beef.
“I don’t have nothing against Eminem,” Benzino tearfully expressed. “He can rap, but I care about us more. I don’t want to talk about it no more. My daughter came into the industry figuring, ‘I gotta be cool with Eminem because everybody is against my dad’… I don’t hate Eminem, I don’t know him to hate him. I don’t hate white people. I’m tired of this s**t, man. It’s just too much. I don’t want to be the bad guy.”
Some fans clowned this statement, especially when he doubled down on his “victory” in the feud in a The Art Of Dialogue interview that released a couple of days after this vulnerable moment. “I already killed him with ‘Rap Elvis.’ Where’s he at? Where’s the response? I want to battle him face-to-face, I think he’s overrated. I think he sucks as a rapper. I’m going to go down in history as the Eminem slayer.” What do you think about all these retaliations and shots? Let us know in the comments and log back into HNHH for the latest on Eminem and Benzino.
Benzino’s new diss track towards Eminem, “Rap Elvis,” is a follow-up to his own shots on “Doomsday Pt. 2” -– and it expands the scope of their shotgun blasts against their immediate circles. Marshall Mathers roped The Source‘s former co-owner’s daughter Coi Leray into their long-running feud, and he responded by bringing up a lot of Em’s rap peers. One of these is Icewear Vezzo, who had previously called his fellow Detroit MC “out of touch,” something that ‘Zino tried to use against them. However, Vezzo responded to the mention on “Rap Elvis” with some harsh words on Instagram on Wednesday (January 31), making his actual stance much clearer.
“Icewear Vezzo said that Em don’t be showing the city love/ Why you ain’t got no words for him, huh? He in your city, bruh!” Benzino rapped. “Say, Benzino, it’s all gangsta, ya heard?” the lyricist clapped back on the social media platform. “I did fed time with your big brother. But check it out, I don’t think it made sense that you brought me up in a diss song for a few reasons.
“Number one, I don’t second nothing you said,” Icewear Vezzo went on. “And number two, I’m never going against a n***a from my city for a n***a from another city. I don’t go against the grain, we don’t move like that. I think you got the wrong impression of Detroit, Michigan and of who I am. Holmes ain’t gotta make no diss songs to say nothing back to me ’cause I ain’t disrespect or discredit who he is. What he did might never get done again. Holmes top five lyricists dead or alive. That s**t not even arguable or debatable. And he put n***as on from his area.”
Meanwhile, Slim Shady’s frequent collaborator and fellow Detroit legend Royce Da 5’9″ saluted Vezzo on his Instagram account. The “Perfect” lyricist clearly gets the respect he deserves from peers and forefathers alike, and he’s standing on his reciprocation of that commendation. Perhaps more rappers will come forward to defend Eminem against Benzino, but only time will tell. For more updates on them and the latest news on Icewear Vezzo, keep checking in with HNHH.
This past week, Eminem re-ignited his 22-year beef with Benzino on “Doomsday Pt. 2” from Lyrical Lemonade’s All Is Yellow. He also mentioned the former Source Magazine co-owner’s daughter, Coi Leray on the track, who later responded to Em’s lyrics on Twitter. Coi wrote, “There’s no way I’m about to entertain these grown ass men and the beef they been having for over 20 years. Lmao it’s so stupid, all I can do is laugh.” Throughout his career, Eminem has been notorious for engaging in beef, sending fiery diss tracks and stray shots at anyone who slights him. His competitive spirit contributed to his ascent as a rapper and still permeates his music today. Today, we are looking into the history of Eminem’s most vicious disses, including particular lines and entire songs. Take a look at the list below.
Eminem’s debut single saw the birth of his Slim Shady alter ego, as well as numerous rap beefs. His second verse on “Just Don’t Give a Fuck” targets multiple white rappers, dissing them in just a few bars. He raps, “I’m nicer than Pete, but I’m on a search to crush a milkbone / I’m everlastin’, I melt vanilla ice like silicone/ I’m ill enough to just straight up diss you for no reason/ I’m colder than snow season when it’s twenty below freezin’.” Eminem cleverly incorporated the names of Miilkbone and Vanilla Ice into cold-blooded punchlines while praising Pete Nice, MC Serch, and Everlast. Before he would beef with the latter, his jabs at Miilkbone and Vanilla Ice on this song led to exchanges of multiple diss tracks.
“Nail In The Coffin” (2002)
One of four diss tracks from Eminem’s feud with Benzino back in 2002, “Nail In The Coffin” was a vicious response to “Pull Your Skirt Up.” The entire song is quite cutthroat, but here are his most scathing bars: “You sit behind a fuckin’ desk at The Source butt-kissin’ / And beggin’ motherfuckers for guest appearances / And you can’t even get the clearances ’cause real lyricists don’t even respect you or take you serious/ It’s not that we don’t like you—we hate you, period.” Though Eminem recently took shots at Benzino, this song spoke true to its title during their beef back in the day.
“Bully” not only fires at Benzino but also at Ja Rule, with whom Eminem was also beefing during the early 2000s. Released during the peak of their feud, Em spits an aggressive diss towards Ja and Murder Inc. In his third verse, he raps, “If Irv really gave a fuck about Ja, like he claims he does / He’d wake him up and make his boy get off them drugs / But he just keeps feedin’ him pills, so if that E doesn’t kill him / Someone from G-Unit will, and I ain’t buzzed.” Eminem backs 50 Cent, who was also aiming disses at Ja Rule. As one of his meanest disses, he declares that he will not back down and “cower to no bully.”
“The Warning” (2009)
Eminem’s tension with Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon is one of his most bizarre feuds, but we got a relentless diss track out of it. “The Warning” responds to Carey’s “Obsessed” song and video, which stems from lyrics on “Bagpipes From Baghdad” and The Eminem Show about the singer. He fires at both Cannon and Carey: “You’re gonna ruin my career, you better get one / Like I’ma sit and fight with you over some slut bitch cunt that made me put up with her psycho ass over six months / And only spread her legs to let me hit once.” A harsh diss, “The Warning” certainly contains some of Eminem’s most disrespectful diss bars.
“Fall” (2018)
Eminem’s 2018 album, Kamikaze took digs at his critics, mumble rappers, and others who have spoken ill of him. Songs like “Fall” respond to his critics, including Pitchfork, Akademiks, Charlamagne tha God, Tyler, The Creator, and Lord Jamar. Most notably, he disses his former Shady Records signee and Slaughterhouse member Joe Budden. “Somebody tell Budden before I snap, he better fasten it or have his body bag get zipped/ The closest thing he’s had to hits is smackin’ bitches (Pump it up!),” he raps. Eminem makes light of Joe’s alleged domestic abuse after Budden heavily criticized Revival on Everyday Struggle. Joe Budden responded on his podcast, claiming to have been a better rapper than Eminem for “this entire decade.”
“Killshot” (2018)
Also on Kamikaze was “Not Alike” where Eminem directly attacked Machine Gun Kelly, which resulted in MGK’s “Rap Devil” diss. In response to the track came “Killshot.” The lethal diss track references the 2008 film in which a man named Colson, MGK’s government name, is targeted by a hitman. The song is riddled with vicious lyrics, including “Younger me? No, you the wack me, it’s funny but so true / I’d rather be 80-year-old me than 20-year-old you” and “as long as I’m Shady he’s gon’ have to live in my shadow.” Eminem also warns MGK: “Kelly, they’ll be putting your name next to Ja, next to Benzino—die, motherfucker! / Like the last motherfucker sayin’ Hailie in vain.” “Killshot” proved once again that one cannot mess with Eminem on a song without consequence.
“I Will” (2020)
“I Will” saw a mini Slaughterhouse reunion without Joe Budden. In the song, Eminem pays respects to his favorite rappers while also poking fun at Lord Jamar. The two have exchanged disses and words outside of music, but “I Will” was Eminem’s most brutal diss against him to date. He raps, “I’m more than you bargained for and I am far more worse than a forty-some bar Lord Jamar verse.”
Eminem responds to Lord Jamar calling him a “guest in the house of hip hop” and calls him the worst rapper in Brand Nubian: “If it was anyone’s house, G Rap and Rakim would be havin’ you mop floors / Run-DMC would be havin’ you cleanin’ sinks / Yeah, your group was off the chain, but you were the weakest link.” Over the span of his career, Eminem has come out victorious in his rap beefs by spitting lethal bars. With his latest verse against Benzino, it still holds true no matter how petty it might come across.
Coi Leray’s never been a shy social media user, and she realized just how much people love her more sultry content. Of course, it also results in plenty of backlash and criticism, but the balance has definitely turned more accepting in recent months. Moreover, the Massachusetts rapper recently took to social media platforms such as Twitter to share a steamy and revealing new picture. It’s a mirror selfie that shows her with some sort of black blanket, but since the room has mirrors on different sides, you can see her from different angles. Most notably, you can see the “Players” hitmaker’s scantily-clad backside thanks to this, which got people pretty rowdy.
However, this is particularly notable thanks to recent context around her in the headlines. Furthermore, this thirst trap arrives just a few days after Eminemreleased a diss track against Coi Leray and her father Benzino, “Doomsday Pt. 2.” In it, he basically continues his decades-long attacks against The Source‘s former co-owner, and also implies that this means he’ll never do a feature with his daughter. Plenty of fans on both sides had a lot to say about this, but it’s nothing compared to the wild nature of previous disses.
Still, Coi Leray responded to all of this via social media, and just like this new thirst trap, they suggest that she’s letting it slide. “Rap beef is so washed and tired,” she expressed. “Exhausting. Embarrassing. Just f***ing over all corny as f**k. [person dumping trash emoji]. I got no issues with no one. I’m so locked in on my grown and sexy vibes… if anybody don’t like me, that’s something they gotta take on with themselves [red heart emoji]. Man who the hell said I wanted a Eminem feature ?? Imagine Eminem on Wanna Come thru?”
Meanwhile, the 26-year-old is obviously no stranger to rap beef, which makes this point a tad moot. Regardless, clearly she wants to move on from the whole thing, at least in this instance. Perhaps this is finally what will end the Benzino and Eminem saga. Nevertheless, for more news and the latest updates on Coi Leray, stay logged into HNHH.
Old habits die hard, and we’re starting to think that Eminem and Benzino will pop a vein if they go too long without speaking on one another. Perhaps that applies more to the latter, since he just has more frequent media appearances, but the former ramped things up with new disses against The Source‘s former boss and his daughter, Coi Leray, on “Doomsday Pt. 2” this week. “Now I got a riddle, one condition, you mustn’t laugh,” Slim Shady begins his attacks. “What is the opposite of Benzino? A giraffe. Go at his neck, how the f**k is that? How can I go at somethin’ he doesn’t have? Arms so short he can’t even touch his hands when they’re up above his head doin’ jumpin’ jacks.
“Sorry, I don’t mean to upset you, Ben’, when I talk about all the debt you in,” Eminem went on. “I hear that you been creepin’ on the low in them cheap hotels that they catch you in. Jesus Christ, dawg, when you said two-10, never guessed you meant at the Red Roof Inn, in a room with one single bed, two men. Well, I guess then I regret to inform you, hate to spoil the day, but this doesn’t bring me no joy to say, guess that Coi Leray feat’s in the toilet, aye?”
Fan Reacts To New Eminem Diss Against Benzino & Coi Leray
While Benzino himself hasn’t responded yet, Coi Leray came through with some sharp Twitter remarks. “Man who the hell said I wanted a Eminem feature?? Imagine Eminem on Wanna Come thru?” she tweeted with crying-laughing emojis and fire emojis. “Rap beef is so washed and tired. Exhausting. Embarrassing. Just f***ing over all corny as f**k. [person dumping trash emoji]. I got no issues with no one. I’m so locked in on my grown and sexy vibes… if anybody don’t like me, that’s something they gotta take on with themselves [red heart emoji].” Check out fans’ reactions to all of this down below.
More Twitter Reactions
Meanwhile, as you can see, it’s funny to think about how different generations are reacting to this based on their knowledge of their storied feud. Still, it probably won’t have the intended impact that Em might think he landed, if only because this is nothing new. But perhaps it’s the start of another run from him where anyone will land in his sights. On that note, stay logged into HNHH for the latest news and updates on Eminem, Benzino & Coi Leray.
The Slim Shady hot takes just keep on coming from the rap world, and one artist has a new angle to consider. Kurupt recently expressed that Eminem “got away” with dissing many other artists because he’s white. Moreover, he sat down with The Art of Dialogue and was asked about Melle Mel saying that Em’s only considered top five because of his skin color, comments which he made on the same platform. Furthermore, they related to Billboard and VIBE’s recent list of the top 50 rappers of all time. While the West Coast MC disagreed and said his whiteness doesn’t diminish the sheer skill of his mic and pen, he did state that Mel has a point.
“That’s his opinion. That’s not our opinion,” the “Who Ride Wit Us” rapper remarked. “The way Dr. Dre took Eminem subject matter-wise is one thing; the way Eminem rocked — he’s a battle rapper, so he’s Hip Hop, no matter what color he is. Dr. Dre took him in this way, so that has no bearing on his skill. His skills are renowned.” Still, he acknowledged that Mel is a legend in his own right.
Kurupt On Eminem’s White Privilege In Disses
“But that’s Melle Mel’s feel on it,” Kurupt went on. “Melle Mel is an icon of Hip Hop … Remember, he’s the original Hip Hop so Melle Mel speaks from that standpoint. For my generation, hey, Eminem is our monster. His color is irrelevant. He does have a point, Eminem being white. He might have got away with a lot of things, like him talking about all these different artists and s**t, you know what I’m saying? And not having no backlash to where he’s blackballed.
“But not from his skill,” he continued. “[Being] white had nothing to do with his skills. But he might have got away with a lot of things. S**t, we got away with a lot of things once we became successful! Once you’re successful, you can do whatever you f***ing want, and the game accepts it because they make money off of what you’re doing, so they give you that pass.” Marshall Mathers’ acknowledgement of his privilege, as well as his artistic feuds, are well-documented at this point. However, it’s always useful to consider what factors are at play, and to not place complete blame or responsibility on an artist who’s addressed this topic many times. Regardless, let us know your take in the comments and return to HNHH for the latest on Kurupt and Eminem.