Benzino recently vowed to stop antagonizing Eminem after years of ridiculing the diamond-selling MC, but the former Source publisher is still weighing in on Slim Shady’s 2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction.
By the sound of it, the Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta alum isn’t exactly thrilled by the news. On Wednesday (May 4), Benzino hopped on Twitter and slammed the Rock Hall for overlooking Black Hip Hop artists who paved the way for Eminem to walk down.
“Rock and roll hall of fame is just like the Grammy’s,” he wrote. “They have no respect for our culture, Black or Hip Hop and if you don’t agree, you’re racist, period point blank.”
Rock and roll hall of fame is just like the Grammy’s, they have no respect for our culture, Black or Hip Hop and if you don’t agree, you’re racist, period point blank.
— Benzino (@IAMBENZINO) May 4, 2022
Someone at Rolling Stone evidently felt similarly and pointed out in another tweet, “Eminem has now been inducted to the Rock and Roll of Fame before countless Black hip-hop pioneers who paved the way for his success. What message does that send?”
Sharing the tweet, Benzino added, “So where’s Nas, Eric B. and RAKIM, Kool Moe D, EPMD, Fearless Four, Fat Boyz, Lauren Hill, Little Kim, OutKast and 100s other Black rappers??
GTFOH.”
So where’s Nas, Eric B and RAKIM, Kool Moe D, Epmd, Fearless Four, Fat Boyz, Lauren Hill, Little Kim, OutKast and 100s other Black rappers?? GTFOH pic.twitter.com/KGBI8KZV5X
— Benzino (@IAMBENZINO) May 4, 2022
Grandmaster Flash and the Furious 5, who are often credited as the forefathers of conscious Hip Hop, was the first pioneering rap group to be inducted into the Rock Hall in 2007. Run-DMC followed in 2009 and the Beastie Boys received the honor in 2012 shortly after MCA passed away from cancer.
Public Enemy was inducted a year later, N.W.A in 2016, 2Pac in 2017, The Notorious B.I.G. in 2020, JAY-Z in 2021 and Eminem in 2022, bringing the grand total to nine Hip Hop acts in the Rock Hall’s 36-year history.
Eminem landed in the Rock Hall in his first year of eligibility. Artists become eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first recording. The foundation’s nominating committee, made up of rock historians, selects nominees each year in the performer category, who are then voted upon by an international body of some 500 rock experts.
Shady’s first official album, Infinite, arrived in 1996. He followed up with the Slim Shady LP three years later, which began his ascent to superstardom. Meanwhile, Benzino has harbored plenty of hatred for Eminem over the years, engaging in a one-sided beef up until this year. But in March, he was singing a different tune.
“To all @Eminem fans and Stans all over the world,” he tweeted. “The beef is officially over. I’m letting y’all know I have no hate towards any of his fans & recognize his contributions to Hip Hop. He truly is apart of the culture & 1 of the best to rock the mic regardless of his color.”
