It's no secret that Eminem and Joe Budden have had an interesting relationship, and while there were times in which the dynamic was amicable, it eventually soured to the point of open hostilities from both parties. And while Em took a few potshots at Joe on Music To Be Murdered By's "Lock It Up," the beef largely settled on its own, though a peace-making conversation between the two does not appear to have transpired. For the most part, it seems as if Em and Joe decided to live and let live, a decision that was nearly upended when an unreleased verse to Eminem and Conway's "Bang" leaked over the weekend.
Joe Budden Reponds To Eminem's Leaked "Bang" Verse">John Lamparski/Getty Images
As Em's verse did take some shots at Joe Budden and State Of The Culture's network REVOLT, Joe took a moment to address the leak on the latest episode of his Joe Budden Podcast. Off the bat, it's clear that Budden is unfazed by the jabs, showcasing some self-deprecating humor as he listens to some of the verse. Despite his co-host Rory playfully goading him to clap-back, Budden opts to take the high road in his response.
"Listen, I was one hundred percent prepared to come on here and scream on Paul [Rosenberg] cause I thought Paul leaked this," explains Budden. "I was prepared to come on here and tell Paul and Em to read the room. Now's not the time for all of that. But this is an old verse. Mal is right, you don't get offended by old verses. And two, I don't think anybody's on that right now. I don't think Em is on that, I don't think my Slaughterhouse brothers is on that. I don't think anybody is on that side right this second. I feel safe speaking on that, I won't tell you why I feel safe speaking on that but I do."
"That's not really where the focus is right now," continues Budden. "That's not where our concern is, or where it should be. It's way to much important shit going on right now. Even if I was going to come in here and start screaming, I'm not rapping so that's not fun. Nothing about this is fun. It's more power in the unity. I'm going to assume we were taking some baby steps to try to reach unity with some of the behind-the-scenes conversations that were taking place. So, nah, this is not thirty-five year old Joe that's going to come and fuck everything up cause I'm mad about some old shit. I'm going to be mature -- I'm forty. Great verse!"
Check out Joe's reflections on "Bang" around the fifty-seven-minute mark.