Love him or loathe him, Eminem is one of hip hop’s ultimate heroes. The icon isn’t just one of the biggest-selling performers of all time; he is also capable of delivering some of the genre’s most fearsome verses. Arguably one of the best lyrical constructors around, Eminem knows a thing or two about creating bars. So when he picks out his favourite of all time, it’s worth paying attention.
In 2020, Eminem was taking part in a live 20th-anniversary conversation with his fans in celebration of The Marshall Mathers LP. The chat actually ended up being a bit of a catastrophe as over 40,000 messages landed on the stream and scuppered. However, below, you can find the full recap of Eminem’s answers, including his favourite verse of all time.
Marshall Bruce Mathers III, a creative credited as a pivotal figure in the popularisation of hip-hop in middle America, has managed to break major racial barriers with his work since breaking into the mainstream and becoming one of the most commercially successful rappers of all time. “If people take anything from my music, it should be motivation to know that anything is possible as long as you keep working at it and don’t back down,” he once said in a quote that typifies his approach to music.
“Nobody likes to fail. I want to succeed in everything I do, which isn’t much. But the things that I’m really passionate about, if I fail at those, if I’m not successful, what do I have?” he added. “People can try to reinvent themselves. I don’t think you can really change who you are, though, because who you are is pretty much where you came from and what you’ve done up to now.”
Mathers, the ‘Rap God’ himself, one who is considered by many to be the greatest of all time, has never been shy to discuss the music that has shaped his own creative vision, often paying homage to some of the most celebrated. Including himself.
During his conversation, he called his second verse from ‘I’m Back’ as one of his favourite verses of all time. When you pick out the lyrics, it’s hard to disagree.
“I take each individual degenerates head and reach into it
Just to see if he’s influenced by me if he listens to music
And if he feeds into this shit, he’s an innocent victim
And becomes a puppet on the string of my tennis shoe
My name is Slim Shady
I been crazy way before radio didn’t play me
The sensational (Back is the incredible!)
With Ken Kaniff, who just finds the men edible
It’s Ken Kaniff on the, internet
Trying to, lure your kids with him, into bed
It’s a, sick world we live in these days
“Slim for Pete’s sakes put down Christopher Reeve’s legs!”
Geez, you guys are so sensitive
“Slim it’s a touchy subject, try and just don’t mention it”
Mind with no sense in it, fried to get so frenetic
Whose eyes get so squinted, I’m blind from smoke in ’em
With my windows tinted, with nine limos rented
Doin’ lines of coke in ’em, with a bunch of guys hoppin’ out
All high and indo-scented
And that’s where I get my name from, that’s why they call me“
Below listen to Eminem’s ‘I’m Back’, the song that contains Eminem’s favourite ever rap verse. Below that, you can also find the full stream and conversation where Em also picks out his favourite song of all time and his favourite character of all time.
