Veteran Chicago MC Rhymefest has added his voice to the discourse surrounding Eminem’s alleged racist past, echoing criticism made by Benzino in a recent interview.
During a revealing appearance on the It’s Just My Opinion Podcast, Rhymefest recounted a moment from his early battle rap days that he says opened his eyes to race and artistry in Hip-Hop. According to the former Kanye West collaborator, he and Eminem were at odds in the ’90s after he says Em hurled a racial threat at him.
When asked if he and Eminem ever went face-to-face in a rap battle, Rhymfest replied, “Battled Eminem in ’98 at this competition called Scribble Jam. It was the biggest battle in the Midwest and one of the biggest rap battles in the country.”
According to Rhymefest, that was the first time he’d ever been called a racial slur by a white man.
“He said, ‘I’ll let my razor split you till they have to staple stitch you/This n#### took my facial tissue turned it to a racial issue.’ And you couldn’t even be mad.”
Reflecting on that moment, Rhymefest explained how it forced him to think differently about the impact of racism in entertainment.
“I realized something about racism that day,” he said. “It’s why ‘Family Guy’ works. It’s only good when it’s funny. It only is non-offensive when it’s dope.”
He admitted Eminem’s skills were so sharp, the crowd let the bar slide.
“Had you said that s### and it not been dope, it would have been a problem,” he said. “But you so cold and courageous, man, that you did it and got away with it.”
Still, Rhymefest emphasized that talent alone shouldn’t shield someone from accountability.
“I had to dig deep and be like, it can’t just be you’re a white guy rapping,” he said. “You gotta dig deep and be like, what is it about the person?”
In his view, the encounter ended with him winning the battle but Eminem winning the war.
Rhymefest’s recollection arrives on the heels of fresh remarks by Benzino, who reignited public scrutiny over Eminem’s early lyrics and the industry’s alleged efforts to cover them up. In a recent interview, Benzino accused music executives of deliberately concealing Shady’s racially offensive past to protect his career.
“Why is he so scared in 20-something years of his career to do interviews with Black media?” Benzino asked. “He’ll expose himself.”
Benzino pointed to the controversial early recordings that resurfaced years ago, asserting that Eminem received a level of protection that Black artists are rarely afforded. He recalled how the label claimed Eminem was just 16 and in a relationship with a Black girl when he made the remarks—though Benzino says the rapper was actually 21.
Benzino claimed executives, including Jimmy Iovine, held closed-door meetings to manage the backlash.
“They got in a room and said, ‘We have to fix this,’” he said, describing a calculated attempt to control the narrative. Benzino argued this defense was crafted to soften the blow and paint Eminem as a misguided youth rather than a grown man making racist statements.