Is Eminem In a Feud With The Game?
Rappers Eminem and The Game have been in the music industry for two decades. Throughout that time, they’ve gained each other’s respect as artists and established themselves as accomplished emcees. But their relationship soured after Eminem’s performance at the 2022 Super Bowl halftime show.
The Game respected Eminem for years
The Game has respected Eminem as a rapper for a long time. In a December 2021 interview with MTV News’ Sway Calloway, the Compton-bred emcee said he would never diss Eminem because he considered him to be one of the greatest rappers in hip-hop.
“One thing that stuck with me is that Eminem is not to be f***ed with ever in hip-hop, ever,” he said plainly. “If you notice out of everybody I take a shot at, that’s the only person that’s untouched. He’s in a bubble and you don’t even say nothing to Eminem. To anybody that ever does, God bless you.”
“He’ll end your career,” he concluded.
Over the years, The Game has gotten into public spats with other rappers, including Eminem’s fellow Super Bowl halftime performer, 50 Cent.
The Game’s thoughts on Eminem today
As a Compton native, The Game would’ve been a natural fit for the 2022 Super Bowl halftime show. Instead, ringleader Dr. Dre invited the likes of Eminem and 50 Cent for the performance.
Eminem’s part in the show struck a nerve with The Game. The rapper opened up about how hurt he was in a February 2022 interview on Drink Champs. “It wouldn’t have meant nothing to you, but it meant something to me,” he said.
The Game went on to say that while he once held Eminem in extremely high regard as one of hip-hop’s most influential rappers, he now views him as an equal peer.
“Eminem is Eminem. I like Eminem; he’s one of the good, great MCs,” The Game said. “I used to think Eminem was better than me. He’s not.”
“I think the best way to see if he is or if I am is… let’s rap about it,” he continued. “Let’s do something, let’s put something out. Let’s see, ’cause that’s what this s*** is, bro. It’s rap.”
“As far as being better than me, nah. Eminem is not better than me. Bro, I’m better than him. I said it again and I’ll keep saying it again, bro,” he added. “It is what it is.”
The Game continued equating himself with Eminem on Twitter in March 2022. “All this talk I see on the net saying Eminem is better than me because he sold more records is like saying McDonald’s is better than Tam’s burgers, it’s FALSE!!!” he said. “They just put more money in McDonald’s and promoted the s*** out the Happy Meal dangling toys in kids’ faces.”
The Game was also upset with Dr. Dre
In his Drink Champs interview, The Game also took a shot at Dr. Dre, who signed The Game to his label in 2003 and produced much of his early work. He mentioned his Kanye West collab “Eazy” and the opportunity to he had to perform it at West’s Donda 2 show in Miami.
“I ain’t had no conversation with nobody regarding Jay-Z and the Super Bowl [halftime show] he put together,” he wrote in a since-deleted Instagram post. “I don’t feel no way about not being included. It was a great show featuring iconic artists. It was a win for the culture.”
