Irv Gotti Says Jay-Z Is A Better MC Than Eminem

Irv Gotti came by the MTV offices and spoke to us about the list recently. Although he wasn’t as adamant as Joe Budden was about the list being wrong, IG took exception to Eminem ranking in the top spot.

“I got a thing with Eminem,” Gotti said. “This has nothing to do with the beef. I don’t really feel like I have beef with Eminem. This has no hatred or nothing. This is just my opinion on it. Vibe did a thing, and they had him as the #1 rapper. Sh– like that kinda pisses me off. You know why? Because let’s take Eminem’s records. Watch my analogy. Eminem is a great artist, no doubt. He puts words together, he’s witty, a smart lyricist, a great lyricist. But how can we say the guy is the best rapper alive? Look at Hov. He makes real records. Every one of Eminem’s first singles is some clown shit. He’s clowning. Is that the #1? That’s not my #1 rapper, man.”

Gotti said he also factored in the battle element in deciding that Jay-Z is better than Em. He said that back in the day, Slim Shady wouldn’t have a chance against a young Jay — or DMX and Ja Rule, for that matter.

“No disrespect, you’re a great lyricist, but I come from a school — I know they ‘battled’ in ‘8 Mile’ — but I come from where they battled on the streets with guns out,” the head of Murder Inc. said. “They would have put you under pressure. All that ‘off the top,’ they would have put you under pressure. I been to battles with X, Jay and Ja, that was some real shit. Homie, you wouldn’t been able to survive.