Tyler, The Creator has recently reflected on his past criticism of Eminem’s 2010 album Recovery, expressing regret and attributing his change of heart to insights gained from a Netflix series.
During an appearance on Maverick Carter’s show on August 14, Tyler publicly apologized to Eminem for his harsh remarks about the album. He explained that after watching the 2023 Netflix miniseries Painkillers, he realized the impact his criticism might have had, considering Eminem was recovering from substance abuse at the time.
“When Recovery came out, I f—king hated it,” Tyler admitted. “I publicly said, ‘This s–t is wack.’ After watching Painkillers, I felt so bad about those tweets and comments because I realized that from his perspective, it probably seemed like an attack. Here he was, clean and getting his life back on track, and I was dismissing his work.”
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Tyler acknowledged that his comments were made without understanding Eminem’s personal struggles and how they influenced the album. “He probably felt like I was attacking him,” Tyler said. “I thought I was just critiquing the music, but he was in a different place in his life. I feel terrible about saying those things because my perspective was so limited.”
Despite his past criticism, Tyler expressed deep respect for Eminem, crediting him with teaching him how to rap and influence his storytelling skills. “I love Eminem. That dude taught me how to rap,” Tyler said.
Tyler hopes to apologize in person if he ever meets Eminem, recognizing the significance of Recovery in Eminem’s life. “If I ever see him, I want to tell him that in person,” he shared.
Recovery was a commercial success, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and winning Best Rap Album at the 2011 Grammy Awards, despite Tyler’s earlier disparagement. The relationship between the two artists has been strained, with Eminem dissing Tyler on his 2018 album Kamikaze, where he rapped, “Tyler create nothing, I see why you called yourself a f—-t, b—h.”
