For five weeks Billboard magazine and Vibe have been publishing their ranking of the best MCs ever in honour of hip-hop’s 50th anniversary.
Last week it became evident that Marshall would be either in the Top 5 or not on the list at all. However audacious the latter option would have been, you cannot discard anything these days.
The final countdown shows that even those who are not particularly fond of Eminem cannot remove his name from history.
Here is the entry Billboard published to introduce Marshall to No.5 on the list:
After coming up in freestyle rap battles, Eminem has continually wielded the mic as his weapon of choice and obliterated anyone who comes in his path – as seen in the countless feuds he’s engaged in over the years. With unapologetically controversial and macabre (yet frequently hilarious) bars and unparalleled rhyme schemes and syncopation, he’s relished playing the role of rap’s supervillain. Em also certifiably spits a mile a minute, breaking Guinness World Records like fastest rap in a hit single with “Godzilla,” where he rapped 225 words in a 30-second segment.
With 15 Grammy awards, 10 No. 1 Billboard 200 albums and three RIAA-certified Diamond singles (“Lose Yourself,” “Love the Way You Lie” and “Not Afraid”), his unprecedented commercial success makes for one of the most noteworthy rags-to-riches tales in popular music. His award-winning 2002 biographical film 8 Mile even depicted the Detroit-bred MC’s real-life struggle to be accepted as a white rapper in hip-hop, a genre created and dominated by Black people. But with his peerless technical skills, larger-than-life personality and turn-of-the-century run of classic albums, Slim Shady has rightfully earned his spot in the upper echelon of GOAT rappers lists.
The ultimate Top 10 of the best rappers in the history of hip hop (Billboard/Vibe edition):
1. Jay-Z
2. Kendrick Lamar
3. Nas
4. Tupac
5. Eminem
6. The Notorious B.I.G.
7. Lil Wayne
8. Drake
9. Snoop Dogg
10. Nicki Minaj
Do you know who is not giving a damn about these lists? Eminem. He has no competition but himself and this is why he’s winning. But many hip hop fans might question the placing of some key names in the history of hip hop.
Kanye West remained outside of the Top 10 as well as many rappers whom Eminem personally respects and admires, such as André 3000 (12), Rakim (13), LL Cool J (14), Big Daddy Kane (20), and more. Em’s closest people in the industry were also left behind — 50 Cent at No.17 and Dr. Dre at No. 40.
What are your thoughts on this ranking?
