When it dropped, Eminem's "Untouchable" left fans divided. While some, including Rodney King's daughter, appreciated Em's lyrical foray into the struggle of being black in America, others felt that Marshall had missed the mark. One such critic included Joe Budden, who happens to be signed to Em's Shady Records Imprint as a member of Slaughterhouse. During his stint as a host of Everyday Struggle, Budden ripped into "Untouchable," dubbing it "one of the worst records he ever heard;" he also accused Em's camp of using the black man's struggle to sell records.
The public tongue lashing led to rumors of a falling out between Eminem and Budden. In fact, many believed Eminem's pointed "Chlorasepetic Remix" verse was subliminally directed at Jumpoff - Bizarre and Joyner Lucas among them. It's an interesting turn of events, especially considering their once amicable relationship; Budden even penned a homage to Eminem called "Slaughtermouse," in which he basically writes an open letter celebrating the Detroit legend. And yet, that didn't stop Budden from absolutely reaming "Untouchable," which no doubt didn't sit well with his label boss.
Recently, Royce Da 5'9" (one half of Bad Meets Evil) sat down with Tidal's "Rap Radar" Podcast, where he discussed the rumored falling out between Em and Budden. "It goes back to the dignity thing, the loyalty," says Royce. "I can say I don't like every single Eminem song that ever came out, and I'm entitled to that opinion...but there's such thing as going past the realm of what your opinion is, and making it so that you're trying to sway people's judgement."
Royce also talks about the relationship between artists, and how they have an unspoken responsibility to treat one another with respect. "I thought if anybody [Joe] would understand how important it is to walk eggshells around each other's art - it's just how we do." Royce also felt that Joe took things a little bit too far, and elaborates on the tipping point: "the thing that he said that I really didn't like was something along the lines about them using the plight of black people to sell a record. That was a little crazy to me cause he knows Marshall personally. He's been in the studio with him."
Evidently, Budden's recent podcast (around the 1:35:00 mark) touched on Royce's Tidal interview, and Joey didn't seem to agree with the perspective. "That sounds like he just said, we sugarcoat each other's shit," said Budden, before going out of his way to confirm that Em is not his friend. Playing back the soundbites of his Everyday Struggle sound-off, Budden explains that he expected Royce to address this on his press run. He also speculates that neither Royce, Em, nor Paul even heard Joe's original comments in the first place. As the podcast proceeds, Budden, Rory and Mal go on to discuss the merits of constructive criticism in art. It's an interesting discussion, especially if you're interested in the nuances of this "beef."
Royce Da 5'9" & DJ Premier's PRhyme 2 drops Friday, March 16th.