Dr. Dre inducted Eminem into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame over the weekend.
During a ceremony held at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Saturday night, the hip-hop mogul took to the stage to introduce the rapper.
“Over 20 years ago, (music producer) Jimmy Iovine played a demo tape for me from a guy who called himself Eminem. The first thing I said when I heard it was, ‘What the f### did he just say?’ I loved it so much, I couldn’t stop listening to it. A few days later, Jimmy called me and said, ‘Hey Dre, you know that’s a white guy, right? That completely f##### me up… it didn’t even cross my mind.”
Despite pushback from his team at the time, Dre recalled how he knew Eminem’s “gifts were undeniable.”
“Each of us was exactly what the other one needed – and I was willing to bet my entire career on it,” Dre continued, adding that the rapper “brought hip-hop to middle America.”
Eminem then performed his hits “Lose Yourself,” “My Name Is,” “Forever,” and “Not Afraid,” among other tracks, with the gig including special appearances from Steven Tyler and Ed Sheeran.
In his acceptance speech, Eminem credited the likes of The Notorious B.I.G, Tupac, Ice Cube, and LL Cool J with paving the way for him to succeed as an artist.
“This s### is crazy. I realize what an honor it is for me to be up here tonight and what a privilege it is to do the music that I love and the music that basically saved my life,” the 50-year-old said. “Those were my rock stars. Those are just a few of the names I hope will be considered in the future for induction because, without them, a lot of us wouldn’t be here.”
Other members of the class of 2022 included Dolly Parton, Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Lionel Richie, and Carly Simon.
The full show will air via HBO on November 19th.