An overlooked aspect of Rakim signing to Aftermath was the possible collaboration with Eminem. After Rakim spent the 1980’s creating new rhyme styles, Eminem has spent the last 5 years taking those to another level. A great admirer of the hip hop icon, Eminem says that the two haven’t hit the studio yet due to schedule conflicts.
“We talked about doing something together when we met for a photo shoot. It seemed that for a minute we just kept missing each other, I told Ra, ‘yo, I’m there. I’m available.’” Rakim said, in agreement, “If me and Em hit the studio, we gonna come out of there with something great. So look out.”
Not one to back down from anyone, Eminem said that he would be intimidated stepping in the booth with the legend, “I just told Ra that before I do a song with him, I need to stack my ideas for like a month, Eminem said. “But whenever you need me Ra, I’m on a plane.”
Rakim and Em also talked to Mass Appeal magazine about the current state of hip hop, “Rhyme styles are advanced, but in someways its stagnating ’cause you got a lot of rappers talking about the same sh*t,” Rakim said. Em said that he never slacks on a verse, unlike many of his peers, “I know that I work hard at putting rhymes together. You can tell when somebody’s in the studio writing two-minute rhymes and doesn’t really give a f**k,” he said.
