In a new interview, Nick Cannon named Eminem among his top five rappers. Interesting, since the two feuded for quite some time.
Give Nick Cannon and Eminem’s history with each other, one would think they’d avoid any mention of each other, much less put the other one on their list of top five, well, anything.
Not Nick Cannon, though. In his latest chat with XXL Magazine, Cannon named Slim Shady among some of his favourite rappers. Of course, the irony of his choice is not lost on him, given the lengthy feud between them back when Cannon was married to singer Mariah Carey.
“I know the one that always shocks everybody, No. 5, Marshall Mathers, Eminem,” Cannon told XXL, admitting that feuding with someone did not mean he wasn’t big enough to acknowledge their talent.
“I gotta give props and respect and credit. The man is a beast. Because the criteria of top five for me is obviously numbers, obviously skill, flow, storytelling ability or message. And I’d even have to say lyricism based off of bars, how you put it all together. And that dude checks all those boxes. So, I definitely give him No. 5.” he said.
Interestingly, this isn’t the first time Cannon has acknowledged Eminem’s chops. Cannon eventually moved past his rivalry with Eminem in 2020, but even when the two were engaged in a constant back-and-forth, Cannon always acknowledged Eminem’s contribution to hip-hop.
“If you’ve ever heard me speak on this matter, I always give that dude his props as an icon in hip-hop.” he told Billboard in an interview in 2020.
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In the same year, Cannon also expressed his desire to finally talk it out with Eminem and put the past behind them.
“One day, hopefully, dude and I will get an opportunity to sit down, ’cause like I said, I do respect his ability,” he told Fat Joe on Instagram. While we don’t now if the two have that opportunity yet, we’re hoping this might smooth things over for the time.
For more on this topic, follow the Hip Hop Observer.