Coi Leray Defends Eminem Following Benzino Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Slander
Coi Leray isn’t echoing her father’s sentiments about Eminem‘s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction.
On Wednesday (May 4), Slim Shady was named among the Class of 2022 inductees into the prestigious Rock & Roll Hall of Fame alongside the likes of Dolly Parton, Lionel Richie and Duran Duran. (Sadly, A Tribe Called Quest won’t be joining them.)
However, his longtime rival Benzino was less than impressed. “Rock and roll hall of fame is just like the Grammy’s,” the former Source publisher tweeted hours after the announcement. “They have no respect for our culture, Black or Hip Hop and if you don’t agree, you’re racist, period point blank.”
Benzino continued his tirade by calling out the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for inducting Eminem on his first go-around before iconic Black Hip Hop acts such as Nas, Outkast and Lauryn Hill (all of whom meet the Rock Hall’s criteria for eligibility, which requires 25 years to have passed since an artist’s first record).
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
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
As Benzino’s scathing remarks sizzled across social media, Coi Leray took to Twitter on Thursday (May 5) to let it be known that she doesn’t share her dad’s views on Eminem’s latest achievement.
“I’m about love, equality, respect and forgiveness,” she wrote. “I have nothing against Eminem, 25 years of my life all I know is he a very talented artist and actor ! (8 Mile was great). Let’s build bridges and get over them before you burn the bridge and burn with it.”
I’m about love, equality, respect and forgiveness. I have nothing against Eminem, 25 years of my life all I know is he a very talented artist and actor ! (8 Mile was great)
Let’s build bridges and get over them before you burn the bridge and burn with it.
— TrendSetter ⭐️ (@coi_leray) May 5, 2022
Benzino’s latest attack on Eminem came as a surprise considering he recently announced the end of their long-running feud, which dates back to the early ’00s during Benzino’s tenure at The Source
“To all @Eminem fans and Stans all over the world,” he tweeted in March. “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.”
What’s less surprising, though, is Coi Leray siding with Eminem over Benzino. The 24-year-old has had a contentious relationship with her Hip Hop media personality father that has played out in public since her rise to fame.
Most recently, Benzino appeared to mock the first-week sales of Coi’s debut album Trendsetter (which earned roughly 11,000 album-equivalent units) by writing, “IF SHE HAD TRACK WITH @IAMBENZINO I WOULDA LISTENED @COILERAY” in an Instagram Story.
Benzino later claimed his Instagram account was hacked and reiterated his love for his daughter on his single “Zino Vs. The Planet,” but that didn’t stop Coi Leray from addressing her dad’s comment.
“God has been the best father to me,” she tweeted. “I can’t complain about anything. My debut album is amazing and not one song can you say is bad. It been 5 days. I understand Coi Leray is so viral & works good on blogs headlines but trust me, it’s all part of the game just ride out andstayfocus.”