Vivek Ramaswamy, a contender vying for the GOP nomination in the 2024 election cycle, responded to a recent cease-and-desist letter issued at the request of American rapper Eminem, explaining he used one of the musician's song as he felt he could relate to the artist's rise to success.
Addressing the controversy to US media, Ramaswamy first jokingly asked “will the real Slim Shady please stand up?” before laughing at his own joke.
"Eminem, in his rise, used to be a guy who actually stood up to the establishment and said the things the establishment didn't want him to say," the Republican presidential candidate said. "I think the fact that my political viewpoints may differ from his—I think people change over the course of their lives. But I have hope for him that one day he will rediscover the renegade that made him great."
According to Ramaswamy, the song has been a longtime favorite. He claims to have picked the song as his “life's theme song” while he was studying at Harvard in 2006, and reportedly raps the hit song at open mic nights and karaoke bars.
“I saw myself, honestly, making it big through American capitalism, and that’s why the Eminem story spoke to me,” Ramaswamy said in late July.
Eminem attends a ceremony honoring Curtis "50 cent" Jackson Honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020, in Los Angeles
© AP Photo / Richard Shotwell
“I didn’t grow up in a trailer, but I also didn’t grow up in the same circumstances that most of my peers at Harvard did, either. I aspired to achieve what many of their parents did. It kind of spoke to me, I would say,” Ramaswamy explained, comparing his own life story to that of Eminem’s.
The 50-year-old rapper did not attend college, and his childhood was reportedly marked by poverty and abuse. Ramaswamy, on the other hand, was raised by a lawyer and a psychiatrist, and attended an elite private high school in Cincinnati where tuition (today) would cost over $16,000 a year. The GOP candidate’s parents even created a stock portfolio for him that generated hundreds of dollars in dividends before he graduated high school, and then thousands of dollars while he was attending Harvard.
Soren Baker, author of "The History of Gangster Rap," told a New York journal: "What Vivek is doing is trying to align himself with the struggle of overcoming adversity. From what I know of Vivek's policies, objectives and goals, they're not in alignment with Eminem at all."
Ramaswamy’s campaign was issued the cease-and-desist letter by Broadcast Music Inc., a music licenser, at Eminem’s request. The letter was reportedly written last Wednesday after the licensing group said it received a communication from “Marshall B. Mathers, III, professionally known as Eminem, objecting to Vivek Ramaswamy campaign’s use of Eminem’s musical compositions.”
According to BMI, Eminem revoked the biotech multi-millionaire's rights to use the music while making campaign appearances. “BMI will consider any performance of the Eminem Works by the Vivek 2024 campaign from this date forward to be a material breach of the Agreement for which BMI reserves all rights and remedies with respect thereto," the letter read.
Occurrences of artists sending conservative politicians cease-and-desist letters, or similar objections, are not rare. In 1984, singer Bruce Springsteen chided then-President Ronald Reagan for planning to use "Born in the USA" for his campaign.
Then in 2016, former President Donald Trump was reprimanded by musical artists Adele, Aerosmith, the Rolling Stones, and R.E.M. when his campaign used their music without their knowledge. Neil Young even sued Trump for using “Rockin' in the Free World” and “Devil’s Sidewalk” for his campaign. The former president, who is running for a second shot at the presidential seat in 2024, attempted to eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Humanities while he was in office.
Most recently, rapper Dr. Dre sent a cease-and-desist letter to conservative congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene when she used one of his songs in a promotional video.