[OPINION] Playboi Carti is the next Eminem

By Jack Tellier

This is going to be the most controversial piece I have ever written. It is a theory I have let marinate in my mind for over a year now and every day I watch it proven more true. Given the new Fortnite skins, I cannot hold it in any longer and am unleashing this theory onto the world. I believe that Playboi Carti is currently on the cultural trajectory to become our generation’s Eminem. Children of the future will view Carti the same way children and teens today see Eminem.

Eminem first achieved mainstream success in 1999 with his hit song “My Name Is” from “The Slim Shady LP.” Playboi Carti broke out in 2015 with “Broke Boi,” but he didn’t reach massive mainstream numbers until “Magnolia” in 2017. These facts don’t make them similar but I’m just trying to lay the groundwork some points I’ll be making later on. Also, I have the utmost respect for what these artists have accomplished and have listened to them both heavily over the span of my life. However, I also cannot ignore how the culture generally sees Eminem nowadays and why I think Carti is on a similar path.

Eminem has faced what I will call “suffering from success.” His innovation in rap, while admirable and revolutionary, has spawned thousands of clones and copycats who not only lack the originality, charisma and attitude that made him appealing in the first place, but they also refuse to adapt to rap’s revolving door of coolness. It is no longer hip to have the violent, irreverent, “eff you” attitude that Eminem brought to the table. He became so huge with his lyricism and aesthetic that people grew tired of it. For younger generations, the clones (Dax, Hopsin, NF, Tom MacDonald, etc.) were the final nail in the coffin for Eminem’s appeal.

I believe “Whole Lotta Red” is the beginning of this for Carti. Think about how many people are trying to replicate the sound he created with WLR. While it is still somewhat tasteful to be a rage rap fan, it has only been five years since the album came out and all trends go out of style eventually. “Whole Lotta Red” also got so big that it’s now synonymous with wannabe edgy high schoolers. I think rage rap has gotten too big to sustain its appeal. Carti’s rising popularity is serving him well financially but in terms of his coolness to fans, I don’t think he’s doing himself any favors. In ten years, there will be people still trying to blow up with that sound yet unaware that it is no longer interesting. Carti will have his own Tom MacDonald. Image suffering because of success.

So Eminem and Carti both pioneered original sounding music that captured a specific generation’s anger or edginess and inspired many, many artists to start making similar songs. Obviously an incredible feat, but there are consequences to becoming mainstream. As everyone knows, Playboi Carti has recently been collaborating a lot with The Weeknd, one of the best-selling artists ever. “MUSIC” gave us multiple Kendrick Lamar features. Both of these artists have been key players in the last few years of mainstream music and I’m not sure how much their fanbases overlap with Carti’s. However, that is intentional; Carti wants new fans and to become part of the mainstream.

If you told me a year ago that “I AM MUSIC” would have three Kendrick features, I don’t think I’d believe you. It probably was not what fans wanted but it was a very understandable business decision considering Kendrick’s run the last year or so. The Weeknd and Kendrick collabs reminded me a lot of when Eminem started making songs with pop star Rihanna in 2010. It was a collaboration that was strange at first, considering their different fanbases, sounds and aesthetics, but sonically it was great and financially it was genius. Eminem began collaborating with Rihanna 11 years after he broke out (“Love the Way you Lie”) and Carti’s first song with The Weeknd (“Popular”) was released eight years after “Broke Boi.”

It’s impossible to talk about Playboi Carti’s career this year without mentioning all of the concerts he’s done. The Antagonist 2.0 tour was a success and the rapper’s first full arena tour. Carti was joined by other members of Opium such as Ken Carson and Destroy Lonely. Eminem’s first arena tour was the Up in Smoke tour in 2000, where he was joined by Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Ice Cube. Although the four were not all part of the same label, both Carti and Eminem’s first arena tours were a joint effort. Eminem also did a six date co-headlining tour with Rihanna in 2014 called the Monster tour. Although much shorter, it reminds me of The Weeknd’s recent After Hours tour that was supported by Playboi Carti. Huge pop stars and very popular rappers coming together to draw a significant crowd.

Reaching a new, mainstream audience is not limited to music. In 2011, Eminem starred in two Super Bowl commercials: one for Chrysler and one for Brisk. This week, a teaser trailer announced that Playboi Carti skins are coming to Fortnite, one of the most popular video games of all time. Many mainstream rappers, Eminem included, have been added to the game. Travis Scott, Ice Spice and Tyler the Creator being in Fortnite isn’t necessarily surprising, but Carti’s addition feels odd. To many, it was always “cool” to listen to Carti but Fortnite’s fanbase is mostly middle schoolers.

Like many things, when a certain style of music or persona gets very popular, overplayed, overused, commercialized, etc. it becomes uncool. I say that Carti has the same trajectory as Eminem not just because of the gradual cashing-out that we have seen before, but mostly because of their influence. People are already growing tired of the rage sound and all of the artists inspired by WLR are probably not helping its longevity. I think rage will be seen somewhat fondly as an outdated, kinda cringe staple of the 2020s the same way people look at the early 2000s shock-value Slim Shady era. I think Carti has gotten so popular that it will be impossible for him to sustain, over multiple generations, what fans found cool about him; and that is okay.