Masta Ace Reflects on Being Labelled the “Eminem Predecessor”.
Master Ace recently sat down with Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur and DJ Thoro for a no-filter interview on AllHipHopTV. During the conversation, the legendary emcee addresses debates about Eminem allegedly copying his flow earlier in his career.
“I hear people say that stuff [Eminem copying his flow] and I’ve seen that recent post about it, but I don’t repost. Because I feel like it is disrespectful. We as artists, we all feed off of each other. I could play you my early stuff before my first album came out, where I sounded like Rakim. We all trying to find our own ways, especially in the early going,” he said.
He continues: “Whatever Em ended up doing, he did something completely on another plateau than whatever I did. He actually names several people who influenced him when he was coming out. It was Redman, Big Daddy Kane, Kool G Rap, it was a long list. I was just one of those names. I respect that brother; he respects me. He’s influenced me in the ways he probably doesn’t even realise as well. The willingness to kind of say stuff that’s a little bit outside of what would you expect a rapper to say. Having that courage. It just opens up minds. And then, some of the ways he kind of put words together and then the way he made stuff rhyme that you never would have thought to make rhyme. It energises you as a writer to go like ‘let’s go there.’”
Elsewhere in the interview, he talked about his legacy, lyrics, Eagles fandom, Shedeur Sanders buzz, why artists should uplift— not undercut and much more.
Watch the interview below.
