In the latest episode of Lowkey Deeply, NF spoke about his upbringing, his process of writing music and mental health. The Gladwin, Michigan-born rapper also talked about how his new album titled HOPE came together and revealed if there really is a feud with Eminem.
Even though NF has cited Eminem as his biggest influence when growing up, fans think there has been going on some back and forth between the two since Slim Shady dropped Kamikaze album. In the song “The Ringer,” Marshall raps: “Last week, an ex-fan mailed me a copy / Of The Mathers LP to tell me to study / It’ll help me get back to myself and she’ll love me (ooouuu) / I mailed the b–ch back and said if I did that / I’d just be like everyone else in the f–king industry / Especially an effing Recovery clone of me (NFing).”
“An effing” is a minced way of saying “a f–king”. Em is supposedly taking a shot at NF who makes music often compared to Eminem in his Recovery era, but who refrains from using profane language in his lyrics. Eminem softens his own profanity to mock this, while simultaneously turning it into a pun on NF’s rap name.
In one of his latest singles, titled “MOTTO” NF raps: “(Oh, snap) This is the industry… (Oh, yeah) Would’ve gave anything / To be respected by the artist I was listening to / but not no more, them days are history.” Fans thought those lines were response to Eminem but the young rapper denied the rumors in the latest interview on Lowkey Deeply.
“The older I get and the more I do music I just don’t care about it as much. Some people trying to take lines like that and make personal thing towards a person specifically but overall, I’ve never felt less of a need to get the nod from anybody artist wise. Because I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished, whether or not I’m ever get the nod from the industry itself, I’m proud of the shows I’m able to do. The records I’m able to sell.” said NF.
Then he continues: “It’s not that a nod from certain artist would not mean something to me but it’s just I don’t feel the same as I would have. So yeah, the reason is, once you just have been around and you have seen the industry more, I feel like you feel just kinda shifted how I thought about the industry and music and stuff like that.”
You can watch the interview below: