Nelly Apologizes to Eminem for Early ’00s Beef: “It Was a Miscommunication”

Nelly has publicly apologized to Eminem for the tension that existed between the two rap icons in the early 2000s, calling their beef a result of a “miscommunication.”

The St. Louis rapper sat down with Bootleg Kev for an honest conversation, during which he reflected on his past comments about Eminem and admitted that he misunderstood the situation at the time. “I misinterpreted something when I was really, really new and I want to apologize to Em,” Nelly said. “But I was at a time where I’m coming in, I’m the new guy, anybody talking… you know, we from the Lou. Somehow I misinterpreted that he had something to say about what we were doing.”

The beef between Nelly and Eminem began when both artists were dominating the charts with their respective albums—Country Grammar by Nelly and The Marshall Mathers LP by Eminem. The rivalry was fueled by comments Nelly made during a 2000 appearance on MTV’s Total Request Live, where he took a shot at Eminem by saying, “Well, I don’t too much know nothing ’bout dirrty, you know what I’m saying? But he be having some sly little comments about me.”

Nelly went on to further taunt Eminem, claiming, “I don’t play with candy, you know what I’m saying? I eat M&Ms, flat out. I just don’t think dude plans on coming to tour in St. Louis, that’s all.” This led to rumors of a diss track, which never materialized, but Eminem did respond on his track “Invasion,” delivering a powerful jab in his signature style.

Years later, Nelly and Eminem had the opportunity to clear the air. Nelly described a pivotal moment when they patched things up. “We were at an afterparty and somebody came and was like, ‘Yo, Em wanna come through and holla.’ I’m like, ‘Okay.’ When he came, he had Hailey with him, she was young. He was like, ‘Yo man, my daughter’s a fan.’ I felt like a dick, man,” Nelly recalled. “Because we were Eminem fans! It was just a miscommunication, man.”

Nelly then went on to praise Eminem, calling him the “G.O.A.T.” and emphasizing his admiration for the rapper. “Em is the G.O.A.T., man. He’s a dope cat, man. I’m glad we got that out the way. It’s fucked up when people that you fuck with and that you admire. It’s like, dude spits!” he said.

This revelation marks the resolution of a longstanding tension between the two artists, who are now on good terms. After their initial squabble, Eminem publicly acknowledged Nelly in 2003 on The Conspiracy Freestyle, rapping, “Back to ruin rap and destroy the industry / Single-handedly and oh man, did we / Yeah, me and 50, Obie, me and Twizzy / And Nelly and Missy and Jigga.” Their camaraderie continued with an appearance alongside D12 in the 2005 comedy The Longest Yard, where Eminem also contributed to the film’s soundtrack.

It’s clear that both rappers have since put their past differences behind them, proving that even the fiercest of rivalries can be squashed with time and understanding.