Eminem Has Named These 15 Rappers As His Favorites

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Ask Eminem about his favorite rappers and the fan in him takes over. He’ll pick apart a verse, recall a record that made him question his own abilities, or praise someone still giving him competition. His choices span generations, with room for both childhood heroes and artists who arrived after he became a star. Together, they reveal what holds his attention when he’s the one doing the listening. | © Dave J. Hogan

1. 2Pac

For Eminem, 2Pac’s greatness went well beyond finding clever words that rhyme. In his tribute to the rapper, he admired how Pac could make listeners feel his anger, pain, and contradictions through his delivery alone. That connection eventually led to Eminem producing much of Loyal to the Game. Imagine studying someone’s records as a young rapper, then being trusted with their unreleased vocals. That is a considerably bigger responsibility than choosing your favorite album. | © Columbia/Kobal

2. The Notorious B.I.G.

Biggie could describe something appalling and still make you marvel at how smoothly the sentence landed. Eminem stepped directly into that territory with his guest verse on the posthumous “Dead Wrong,” matching its gruesome storytelling with his own horror-show imagination. The admiration also appears in his greatest-rappers selections. Underneath the outrageous subject matter, listen to Big’s phrasing: the pauses, changes of pace, and effortless conversational rhythm make complicated writing sound almost suspiciously easy. | © Larry Busacca

3. JAY-Z

The argument over who had the better verses on “Renegade” could probably sustain its own podcast network. Meanwhile, Eminem has repeatedly put JAY-Z among rap’s greatest, including in his “’Till I Collapse” roll call. Listen past the competitive scorekeeping and their collaboration gets more interesting: Jay sounds measured and conversational beside Em’s tightly wound delivery. Both are addressing how outsiders judge them, but neither needs to borrow the other’s voice to make his point. | © John Phillips

4. Nas

Some fans buy a T-shirt. Eminem spent roughly $500–$600 on a sealed cassette of Illmatic, which is a fairly persuasive way of saying you love Nas. The appeal survives without the collector’s packaging: Nas can establish a neighborhood, a mood, and a character’s predicament in remarkably little space. His storytelling invites close listening without constantly announcing its difficulty. For someone who studies rap as intently as Eminem, that debut offers plenty to obsess over. | © Matt Salacuse

5. Lil Wayne

Put Lil Wayne and Eminem on a track together and subtlety generally takes the afternoon off. “Drop the World” and “No Love” let their contrasting voices loose on the same record, with Wayne’s rasp setting up Em’s increasingly explosive delivery. Eminem has praised Wayne for approaching rap with the ambition to be the best. It helps explain their mutual respect: both treat an unexpected rhyme or an absurd comparison as a reason to keep pushing. | © Randy Miramontez/Dreamstime.com

6. J. Cole

J. Cole’s conversational delivery can disguise how carefully he builds a verse. He lets an observation develop, follows it into an uncomfortable admission, and usually sounds like he expects you to keep up without a fireworks display. Eminem included him in his 2020 greatest-rappers selections and praised his drive to compete at the highest level. Cole’s appeal here is easy to hear: an approachable voice can still belong to someone taking the writing very seriously. | © David Peters

7. Kendrick Lamar

Calling Kendrick Lamar one of his generation’s best apparently wasn’t enough for Eminem, who has placed him among the greatest lyricists of any era. Their collaboration “Love Game” offers a particularly mischievous example of what they share. Over a jaunty backing track, both bend their voices around messy relationship stories, sounding more interested in inhabiting ridiculous characters than behaving like respectable rap royalty. Kendrick’s technical ability comes with an actor’s instinct for making a verse feel inhabited. | © Arturo Holmes/MG23

8. Rakim

Before a listener can appreciate Eminem’s elaborate rhyme patterns, it helps to spend some time with Rakim. His work with Eric B. made intricate internal rhymes and an unhurried delivery sound entirely compatible; complexity didn’t have to arrive shouting. Eminem has repeatedly acknowledged him among rap’s foundational greats. Put their performances side by side and the temperaments differ dramatically, but the attention to how sounds connect inside a line gives them plenty to discuss. | © Keith Hutter

9. André 3000

Trying to predict where André 3000 will take a verse is an excellent way to be wrong for several minutes. The OutKast rapper can slide between romantic uncertainty, eccentric humor, and startlingly personal reflection without losing his musical footing. Eminem named him in “’Till I Collapse” and included him again in his 2020 selections. André’s adventurous phrasing makes those endorsements particularly satisfying: technical brilliance doesn’t require every gifted rapper to sound like they trained in the same room. | © Emma McIntyre

10. Royce da 5’9”

Royce da 5’9” has the unusual job of being both one of Eminem’s favorite rappers and someone expected to keep pace beside him. Their Bad Meets Evil partnership makes that relationship audible: verses become exchanges, with each rapper leaving the other something to answer. Listen to the sharp changes of rhythm and tightly packed phrasing. Royce brings enough authority to hold his own without sounding like an understudy, which is rather essential in this particular duo. | © Paras Griffin

11. LL Cool J

The gold chain is a lovely detail. Eminem grew up coveting LL Cool J’s look in the “I’m Bad” video, and LL eventually had a similar chain made for him. That childhood admiration later reached the recording booth on “Murdergram Deux,” where the two sound thoroughly delighted to make each other work. LL’s confidence, forceful delivery, and knack for turning hard rap into popular records had clearly made an impression long before the jewelry arrived. | © Frazer Harrison

12. Treach

Hearing Naughty by Nature’s “Yoke the Joker” nearly convinced a young Eminem to pack it in. He has recalled being so intimidated by Treach’s performance that he wondered whether he could ever rap at that level. Revisit the track and the reaction feels reasonable: the attack is relentless, but the syllables remain sharply articulated. Anyone who knows the group mainly through its party anthems should start there. Apparently, it doubles as a confidence test for aspiring MCs. | © Pyramid Entertainment Group

13. Redman

“Reggie” comes first in Eminem’s ordered list on “’Till I Collapse.” That’s Redman, for anyone who has spent years enthusiastically rapping along without checking. His combination of rubbery delivery, filthy jokes, and formidable technique makes the placement understandable. Redman can sound as though he’s making trouble for his own amusement while keeping the rhymes remarkably precise. Eminem has also praised his consistency, a useful reminder that the comedy should never distract from the craftsmanship underneath it. | © Valerie Macon

14. Kool G Rap

Crime stories become frighteningly vivid in Kool G Rap’s hands, partly because the writing gives you so much to picture while the rhymes keep moving. Eminem included him in his 2020 greatest-rappers selections and has acknowledged his place in his musical education. G Rap’s densely connected syllables reward the sort of obsessive replaying that Em openly enjoys. You can follow the narrative on one listen, then spend the next wondering how he fitted everything together. | © Mac Media

15. Big Daddy Kane

Eminem put his debt to Big Daddy Kane directly into “Yellow Brick Road,” recalling how Kane’s approach to compound rhymes informed his early connection with Proof. That makes the influence unusually easy to trace. Kane could accelerate through intricate passages while retaining the swagger of someone barely breaking a sweat. The lesson extends beyond fitting more syllables into a bar: all that careful construction still has to sound good when someone finally presses play. | © NY1