It’s well-known that before blowing up with his breakout single “My Name Is,” Eminem cut his teeth in the battle rap scene, taking on underground rap legends like MC Juice and Supernatural. Afterward, he had several well-publicized feuds with rivals such as Benzino, Canibus, Ja Rule, and Machine Gun Kelly in which he almost inarguably came out on top. So, when Compton rapper The Game took shots at Eminem with his song “The Black Slim Shady,” many fans were surprised at his audacity.
In a new interview with the Rap Radar Podcast, The Game explained his reasoning for taking aim at such a high-profile, well-respected, and hardened target. When asked by co-host Brian “B-Dot” Miller, “What’s the reason for going at Eminem?” The Game responded, “Just because nobody does.”
“It’s not personal,” he elaborated. “I came up on Em, too. I remember the first time that ‘My Name Is’ came out. I was ‘whoaed’ by it. I felt the same feeling when I heard that, that I felt when I heard ‘Juicy’ from B.I.G. the first time. I always f*cked with Em.” However, he says, the texture of that admiration changed when he and Shady signee 50 Cent fell out. “I think me and 50’s fallout made him choose a side and he wasn’t doing the sh*t that I did. He was like, ‘I’m going with 50.’”
But really, Game says, it boils down to one thing: “Hip-hop gotta be interesting,” he declared. “These n****s these days are so goddamn boring. Every time somebody want to beef, somebody gotta die. Sometimes, ladies and gentlemen, it’s just hip-hop and you can just leave it at that.”
Em Challenge. #RapRadarPodcast @thegame https://t.co/OTw9pQfEFJ pic.twitter.com/qtAOprUeKc
— Elliott Wilson (@ElliottWilson) September 15, 2022