Nick Cannon joined the On Par With Maury Povich podcast on Monday (Nov. 9), where he reflected on his feud with Eminem, which was sparked by Slim Shady dissing Cannon’s ex-wife, Mariah Carey, in 2009.
“He disrespected my woman, man,” Cannon told former Maury host. “You can’t come at my wife and don’t expect to get this work. I think he and Mariah had a professional relationship, which he professed to be a personal relationship.”
Cannon continued: “So that was way before me. So then by the time we got married, he had some harsh words because I guess he was still in his feelings. I couldn’t stand for that at the time. At the dignity of my woman, I had to fight for my relationship, my love.”
Cannon and Carey tied the knot in 2008. Em implied that he previously was romantically involved with the pop star on 2009’s “Bagpipes From Baghdad.” The Wild ‘N Out creator addressed Em in a since-deleted Tumblr post.
Many believe Carey’s response came with her “Obsessed” single later that year, which saw her play a man resembling Slim Shady in the top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hit’s visual. Em appeared to reply to Carey and Cannon on “The Warning” in July 2009.
Carey and Cannon’s divorce was finalized in November 2016 and all was quiet on the feud front with Eminem — that is, until the Drumline star’s appearance on T.I.’s Expeditiously podcast, which revived the beef with the Detroit rapper. Eminem seemingly jabbed at Cannon with his verse on Fat Joe’s “Lord Above.”
Cannon proceeded to unleash a trifecta of diss tracks taking aim at Eminem in December 2019: “The Invitation,” “Pray for Him” and “Canceled: Invitation,” the latter of which attempted to paint Em as a racist with old remarks.
Eminem didn’t dip his pen to respond on wax or in the studio, but only with a short reply on X as their feud heated up.
Cannon spoke about beefing with Em during an interview with Billboard in April 2020. “I was defending myself once again. He keeps bringing it up for decades,” he said. “I’m one of those cats that matches energy. I don’t do it — I overdo it. Even in high school, I was a little guy, but if you made fun of me, I was gonna make fun of you, your momma, and that’s the same energy of Wild ‘N Out.
The multi-hyphenate entertainer added: “It was a month of social commentary, but if you’ve ever heard me speak on this matter, I always give that dude his props as an icon in hip-hop. I think he knows better now. If he keeps talking about me, I’m gonna keep talking back.”
Watch the full interview with Nick Cannon below. Talk about his feud with Eminem takes place around the eight-minute mark.