What did Tyler, the Creator say about Eminem's 'Recovery' album? Grammy winner issues apology over harsh criticism 

Tyler Gregory Okonma, who goes by the stage name, Tyler, the Creator, issued an apology to Eminem over harsh criticism of the latter's Recovery album. During his Wednesday, August 14, 2024, appearance on Maverick Carter's namesake podcast, the rapper reflected on a range of topics, including his life and career.

At one point, the conversation moved to Em and his seventh album, Recovery (2010). The project addressed Em's own addiction, exploring themes like introspection, recovering from addiction, and emotional drives. It was met with critical and commercial success, debuting atop the Billboard 200 chart and winning a Grammy for Best Rap Album.

However, Tyler, the Creator disagreed with the praise.

"When that album came out I f*cking hated it. Hated it, publicly was like, 'this sh*t is wack, didn't like it.'

The Flower Boy rapper explained that it wasn't until he saw the 2023 Netflix miniseries Painkiller that he reconsidered his opinion. The miniseries, Painkiller, investigates the origins of the opioid crisis in the United States during the 1990s. Watching the show allowed Tyler, the Creator to see the album from Em's perspective, adding that his comments must have come off as a personal attack.

"I felt so terrible about some of the things I said about that Recovery album because I realized that was a big step and meant a lot to him," Tyler stated.

He continued:

"I felt terrible. If I ever see him, I want to tell him that in person."

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"That dude taught me how to rap"—Tyler, the Creator credits Eminem for his personal development as a rapper

Tyler, the Creator told Mavericks host that he "felt bad" about his tweets criticizing Recovery. He reasoned that, from Em's perspective, Okonma's public comments trivialized his recovery and "probably felt like (Tyler) was attacking him." He stated:

"I thought I was just like, ‘I don’t like the music.’ He was in a different part of his life and probably felt like I was attacking him. Now I feel so bad about saying that stuff because my perspective was so limited."

The Hawthrone-born musician also gushed about Eminem's rapping skills, crediting him for his development as a hip-hop artist.

"I love Eminem. That dude taught me how to rap. I learned how to put words together in rhythm because of some of the Eminem stuff I was hearing and storytelling and things like that."

Over the last decade, Eminem and Tyler, the Creator have shared a frosty relationship. Tyler rose to fame in the late 2000s with his music collective, Odd Future. Over the years, he frequently criticized the Detroit-born rapper's music, including tweeting the latter's 2014 compilation album Shady XV was "sh*t" and "trash" and in 2017 tweeting "this f*ckin song is horrible" about Em's Walk On Water from Revival.

Tyler, the Creator's Odd Future mate, Earl Sweatshirt, stated in a 2015 interview with Spin that he stopped following Em. He explained anyone still following the Mockingbird rapper "drank way too much Mountain Dew and probably need to like, come home from the army."

Following, years of jabs, Eminem, in his track titled Fall from Kamikaze (2018), clapped back at Tyler, the Creator. He rapped

"Tyler create nothing, I see why you called yourself a f*ggot, b*tch."

To be noted, Kamikaze was released just eight months after Revival. The project served as a response to the backlash and criticism (many claimed Eminem's relevance and talent were waning) the latter album received. He even dissed several of his peers in the tracks.

Needless to say, the Tobey hitmaker faced widespread backlash. In a 2018 interview with Sway, Em admitted he took it too far in the song, adding

"In my quest to hurt him, I realized that I was hurting a lot of other people by saying it. It was one of the things that I kept going back to and going, ‘I don’t feel right with this.’"

Em, referring to his friction with Tyler, the Creator, and Earl Sweatshirt, told Sway that he "really liked (them)," even praising Odd Future. He explained that he believed there was "mutual respect" between them.

In 2014, the Detroit rapper even brought on the Odd Future crew to open his show at Wembley Stadium in London. Earl's comments to Spin in 2015, hence were a shock. Em remarked, "I was like really? I was like what the f*ck? You guys were just on tour with us! We cracked jokes!"

Eminem confessed that the jibe(s) in Kamikaze were personal. Talking about their criticism of his music, Em stated:

"Listen man, you don't have to like it and it can really s*ck, but being that somebody really was cool to you, you would expect some kind of reciprocation. Just don't go public with it."

He added:

"I chalk it up to them being young and just kids. I was a d*ck when I first came out."

Em explained that his breaking point was Tyler, the Creator's 2017 tweet about Walk on Water. At that point, he "need(ed) to say something" and not turn into "America's punching bag."

In response to the Fall slur, Tyler told the Guardian (in 2019) that he was "ok," asking people not to get offended on his behalf. He rhetorically questioned, "Did you ever hear me publicly say anything about that?" He revealed that he was playing GTA when he first heard that. After replaying it for assurance, he continued with his game. Eminem has not publicly reacted to the development.