Eminem Says He’s ‘Always’ Trying ‘To Be The Best Rapper’ In Hip Hop

Eminem has stated that J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar keep him on his toes and that he’s still working to be the greatest rapper alive.

Slim Shady described in detail how his creative process has altered over the years, going beyond just scribbling down song ideas on paper to crafting bars that would help him stay on top of the game. He made this revelation in a lengthy opinion piece for XXL.

Eminem remarked, “There are times when I wish I could regain that freedom.” “I had a blank canvas at the start of my career that I could paint on. I haven’t written a song about any of this. I could write a song about it. As you continue to paint on that canvas, you’ll find you’ve written a song about everything you could think of. I therefore begin to enter my own thoughts.

“I’d rather be the best rapper if I had to choose between being the best rapper and making the best albums,” he went on. To be the greatest rapper, that is how I rap. Though everyone has their favorite rappers all of that is subjective, and in my opinion, doing that is preferable to simply making amazing music.
He went on to say that nothing else matters to him and that his “role” in the diverse hip-hop world today is to be the best.

“My role in today’s Hip Hop is to always try to be the best rapper. That’s it. That’s how I want to feel inside,” he said. “That’s what I want to feel. And I can’t do that until I listen to what the fuck J. Cole just put out. What the fuck did Kendrick just put out? And I’m thinking, Oh, these dudes ain’t playing.