Eminem Praises Young M.A & YBN Cordae As New Artists That Impress Him

Following Eminem’s surprise appearance at the Academy Awards on Sunday, Variety caught up with the Detroit rapper to discuss the performance and his thoughts on the current state of hip-hop. When asked which new artists he’s excited about, he pointed to a pair of emerging rappers as well as his own Shady Records signees Griselda.

“Well, we had Young M.A on the album, and she’s definitely one of the new artists that I’m super excited about—every time she puts something out, I listen,” he said, referencing their 2020 collaboration, “Unaccommodating.”

The Brooklyn MC previously rated Em as No. 4 on her all-time favorite rappers list. “I love Eminem because he’s so psychotic-logically different,” she told Angie Martinez. “He’s saying stuff that’s crazy to me. You gotta really think about what he says. I just respect his craft, and he always made dope music and he spoke from his experiences.”

Eminem also named his own Shady Records artists as well as one of Maryland’s emerging stars. “And the guys we have signed to our label, [Buffalo, N.Y. rap trio] Griselda, that’s exciting. YBN Cordae, he’s dope,” he said.

Although YBN Cordae has praised Em in the past, last year he gave Big L the edge over Eminem in his personal Top 5 rappers of all time list. Still, it’s clear that he has appreciation for Em’s impact on hip-hop. He even remixed Em’s classic “My Name Is” back in 2018.

As for his own music, Em said he doesn’t have much planned yet. “I don’t really have anything coming up next, to be honest, just working this album and whatever videos come along next. But we don’t have anything written in stone just yet,” he said.

Check out his full Variety interview here and catch up on all the lyrics to Eminem and Young M.A’s “Unaccommodating” on Genius now.