Watch Eminem Talks About writing “Rap God” in only 6 minutes.
Eminem recently spoke with Sway Calloway on Shade 45 about a variety of topics, including the composition process of his song “Rap God“. “I don’t know because I kind of stopped counting bars,” says Eminem. “The beat was so crazy when I first heard it. It just made me wanna write. For some reason, that hook popped in my head, and it kind of took off from there.”
Eminem recently stated in an interview, “There is something inside me that is a little more happy when I’m angry. As bad as it feels to be there, there’s also a rush about it that I like because it inspires me to say something back.”
Eminem also cracks a joke about how Long it Took to write it. “[It took] 6 minutes. I freestyled it, that was off the top of the dome,” Marshall said, briefly cracking up. “Nah, I don’t know how long it took to write it. It just happened.”
Eminem then assesses the conversation of the greatest rappers of all time. “It depends on who’s conversation. If I’m in it, then I’m honored. If I’m not, then it is what it is.” he said. “The thing about music is that everyone has a different opinion. Your top 5, top 10, maybe completely different than mine. I think that everybody who competitively raps, which is probably most rappers, wants to be that. If you don’t, then why are you rapping? even to be thrown in that conversation by anyone is an honor.”
Then the Detroit rapper revealed his favorite rappers of all time. “I don’t know if I can put an order on it. I would probably say all time… LL would have to be in there. There’s too many I wanna throw up in there. Run DMC, Beastie Boys, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane, Treach…”
The song was placed into the Guinness World Records as the hit single with the most words, with 1,560 words. The song was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance, but was defeated by Kendrick Lamar’s I song.
Despite its late release, the song reached number five on the UK Singles Chart and first on the UK R&B Chart. It took the place of his album’s first single, “Berzerk.” It debuted at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in the United States. It debuted at number one on the Rap Songs list without the R&B component. With over 270,000 downloads, it also debuted at number one on the Digital Songs chart.
Raymond Jones reportedly sued Eminem and his record company Interscope for $8 million in relation to the 2013 smash song “Rap God.” Jones is a part of the rap group Hot Stylz, which is connected to Yung Joc, and goes by the name Raydio G. He reportedly alleges that Eminem used a 25-second sample from his 2007 song “Lookin’ Boy” in the middle of the tune without his consent. There are also references to the Columbine High School shooting, the Bill Clinton-Monica Lewinsky controversy, the late Tupac Shakur, Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, “The Walking Dead,” planking, and other topics in the lyrics of “Rap God.”
Rap God debuted at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 2 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Even without R&B component, it went to number one on the Rap Songs chart. It also debuted at the top of the Digital Songs chart, selling over 270,000 downloads in its first week.
Eminem passed Lil Wayne (six) for the most top 10 starts among men in the chart’s 55-year history with “Rap God.” The song has been certified 3 Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and has sold 1,896,000 copies in the United States as of September 2017.
The song, which includes 1,560 words, was the first popular single to break the Guinness World Record for most words in a song. Additionally, the song was up for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance, however, Kendrick Lamar’s I won the award instead.
Check out Eminem’s full interview below.
