Eminem is no stranger to a little bit of controversy. Whether it’s backlash from his profanity-filled lyrics or a feud with his hip-hop peers, the Detroit rapper has undoubtedly rubbed many individuals up the wrong way. One odd battle Eminem faced was with the beloved vocalist Mariah Carey. When Mathers first exploded onto the hip-hop scene at the turn of the millennium, it wasn’t long before rumours started to emerge, one of which was that he and Mariah Carey had a fling. However, few knew if there was any truth behind the hearsay.
Carey and Mathers have both spoken about the alleged sexual encounter. However, the two have two very different accounts concerning the nature of their relationship. The esteemed vocalist has always insisted that she only ever had trivial conversations with him. On the contrary, the ‘Stan’ rapper has always alluded that their relationship was much more significant than this. Various publications have tried to put the pieces together and figure out the true nature of their relationship. However, even some of Carey’s former collaborators and associates, such as DaBrat, have implicitly confirmed Eminem’s version of events, being that they did, in fact, date briefly.
Akin to Jay-Z and Beyoncé, no individual can put an exact date or time on the relationship’s beginnings. However, according to reporters at Complex, in 2001, Mariah approached the Detroit musician seeking a feature for her Charmbracelet album. This interaction with Mathers in 2001 is believed to be the start of their relationship timeline. However, even if there was some kind of romance between the two superstars, it was short-lived as by 2002, Mathers was rudely name-dropping her on his project, The Eminem Show.
In his 2002 song ‘Superman’, Mathers rapped, “What you tryna be? My new wife? / What, you Mariah? Fly through twice.” However, Carey didn’t take this lying down, and there was much speculation about the lyrics of her 2002 track, ‘Clown’ on which she ambiguously speaks about a relationship singing, “should’ve left it at I like your music too.” As Carey is not an emcee, the petty beef eventually simmered down, that was until Carey found herself a husband in Nick Cannon. Her new hubby was the perfect target for Mathers.
Carey, akin to Will Smith, Christina Aguilera and many others, was a public figure that Mathers loved to taunt in his music. However, even after her marriage, the Detroit rapper didn’t see her marital status as a deterrent but perceived it as a fantastic way he could get under her skin. With this being the case, shortly after her wedding, the ‘Stan’ rapper released a humorous yet evocative diss track entitled, ‘Bagpipes From Baghdad’. The brazen single featured lyrics such as, “Mariah, whatever happened to us? Why did we have to break up?” The track even had lyrics aimed at Nick Cannon, and during the song’s second verse, Eminem can be heard proclaiming, “Nick Cannon better back the fuck up/ I’m not playin’, I want her back, you punk”.
Eminem and Mariah Carey’s feud wasn’t a result of something vicious or highly incendiary. However, what’s clear is that either Mathers or Carey was lying about the nature of their relationship, which led to a petty tit-for-tat between the two. However, when she got married, things got heated, and Eminem released a diss track entitled ‘The Warning’ aimed at Carey and Nick Cannon. You can hear the track in the video below.
