Tyler, The Creator recently opened up about his past Eminem dis, his 2010 album “Recovery,” showing remorse and giving a very honest apology to the legendary rapper. Tyler confessed on Maverick Carter’s Mavericks show that he did not know what Eminem was going through then and was insensitive to the public dissing of this album.
Tyler, The Creator says he owes Eminem an apology for dissing him & his 2010 album ‘RECOVERY’ 🙏
“I felt so bad … he probably felt like I was attacking him… And I love him, that dude taught me how to rap.” pic.twitter.com/nRqyQhkc7b
— NFR Podcast (@nfr_podcast) August 14, 2024
Tyler apologized for everything after he had a deeper understanding of Eminem’s journey, seeing especially how he came across following watching the Netflix miniseries “Painkillers.”.
“When ‘Recovery’ came out, I f**ing hated it,” Tyler confessed. “Publicly, I was like, ‘This sht is wack.’ I didn’t like it. But after watching the 2023 Netflix miniseries ‘Painkillers,’ I felt so bad about those tweets and things like that because thinking from his perspective, someone like me publicly saying that stuff—him off drugs and being clean and getting to a point in life where that’s behind him—and me implying, ‘Nah, this sh*t is wack.'”
Tyler also looked up to Eminem, saying that he was a huge influence on his own path to music.
“I love Eminem. That dude taught me how to rap,” he said. “I learned how to put words together in rhythm because of some of the Eminem stuff I was hearing and storytelling and things like that.”
Despite the past criticisms, Eminem’s “Recovery” turned out to be huge commercially. It debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and even won him his Grammy for Best Rap Album in 2011. Actually, the CD was what turned things around for Eminem’s career, showing his rise toward sobriety and personal growth.
This tension between Tyler and Eminem first became public in 2017; after the single release of Eminem’s “Walk on Water,” which featured Beyoncé, Tyler tweeted that the song was “horrible.” This very up-front, no-filter assessment got Eminem’s attention. The two had been cordial beforehand, so it stung. The comments were misconceived as personal betrayal on Eminem’s part, who once showed solidarity with Tyler and his collective, Odd Future.
Things only got worst when Eminem released a diss track, “Fall,” from his 2018 album “Kamikaze,” in which he used a homophobic slur against Tyler. Eminem would later apologize for using the-word, explaining that his anger got the better of him and caused him to say something he shouldn’t have said. “In my quest to hurt him, I realized that I was hurting a lot of other people by saying it,” Eminem confessed.
Despite the diss, Tyler showed a mature nature by not responding publicly on the diss. He knew what Eminem wanted to do and didn’t take the words personally. “Did you ever hear me publicly say anything about that? Because I knew what the intent was,” Tyler explained.
Tyler‘s apology speaks of how the two are now in a longer time of growth and understanding as artists. That shows that their relationship is definitely not black and white, but what both have said bears real consequences. Tyler shows personal growth and respect for Eminem’s journey in his decision to handle past criticisms.
As Tyler matures into an artist, the fact that he can reflect on his actions and make amends makes him relatable to his fans. At the same time, Eminem’s acceptance of his mistakes and becoming reflective over the impact of his lyrics work as a call to action about what artists owe their audience.
For a music community as rife with rivalries and beef as this, this second chance for Tyler and Eminem is a breath of fresh air—a glimpse at humility and respect. It shows that understanding and growth can always be attained even within hip-hop—a world where words can be sharp-edged, abusive, and cutting.
