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Eminem Is Only A Top 5 Rapper ‘Because He’s White,’ Says Melle Mel

December 04, 2003

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Melle Mel isn’t doubting Eminem‘s skills on the mic, but he does feel that he wouldn’t be ranked as high as he is if it wasn’t for the color of his skin.

The conversation came up when discussing Billboard‘s recent list of the Top 50 Rappers of All Time – where Eminem landed at No. 5.

Melle Mel, who’s No. 48 on the list, began: “Obviously he’s a capable rapper. If you was talking about sales, he’s sold more than everybody. If you were talking about rhyme style, okay he got a rhyme style. But he’s white. He’s white!

“So now if Eminem was another n-gga like all the rest of us, would he be Top 5 on that list when a n-gga that could rhyme just as good as him is 35? That had records and all that? He’s 35. He’s white.”

He continued: “And anybody could be as mad … They could feel how they wanna feel. If you don’t think that race plays a part in the equation of how great he is — I heard one of the dudes that’s down with him, Royce Da 6’9″ [mislabelling Royce Da 5’9″] or one of those – I heard he’s just as good as Eminem. Why he ain’t as big as Eminem? Because he’s Black! Ain’t none of that shit hard to figure out. Eminem gets a top spot because he’s white.”



— The Art Of Dialogue (@ArtOfDialogue_) March 2, 2023



Future is who landed at No. 35 on Billboard‘s list, but it’s unclear if Mel was directly referring to him or picked an arbitrary number.

Melle Mel isn’t the only one expressing distaste with the list. TMZ caught up with Ice Cube at the airport shortly after the rankings dropped, who dismissed the list all together.

“Who?” he asked rhetorically when the reporter mentioned Billboard‘s list. “I don’t fuck with Billboard or the editor. Billboard ain’t Hip Hop so their opinion don’t matter. So who gives a fuck?”

Cube added that his Mount Westmore contemporary Too $hort not being included on the list was definitely an undeserved snub. “It’s an irrelevant list,” he continued. “It’s like assholes: everybody got one and they all stink.”

Lil Wayne, who landed at No. 7, wasn’t into the list either. “Man, who the hell is before me?” Wayne questioned when Apple Music’s Zane Lowe asked him his thoughts. “Was the list including ALL Hip Hop, like before and after as well? I can deal with that.”

He added: “I will tell you that I am a muthafuckin’ one. Everybody whose names you named, they also know I’m number one. Go ask ’em. They know what it is.”

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