Vivek Ramaswamy Told to Cease and Desist

Vivek Ramaswamy, a Republican candidate for president, was a Harvard University undergrad who enjoyed rapping. He admitted to being an Eminem fan in an interview with The New York Times. However, it seems the rapper does not like the conservative.

Ramaswamy attended the Iowa State Fair in early August, as is customary for presidential primary contenders. His favorite walkout song at the event was “Lose Yourself” by Eminem. The song from the 2002 film “8 Mile,” which was partially based on the rapper’s life, began to be played by a sound technician.

Ramaswamy started rhyming to the music as soon as the song started playing on the speakers. It became widely shared. A letter from music licenser BMI was delivered to the candidate’s campaign attorney less than two weeks later, on August 23. The organization said it had “received communications from Marshall B. Mathers, III [Eminem], objecting to the Vivek Ramaswamy campaign’s use of Eminem’s musical compositions” and requested that the license be cancelled. He was officially informed by the letter that point forward he was not permitted to use the song.

Eminem seldom grants music licensing, but he did in 2020 for a political ad for Kamala Harris and Joe Biden. The rapper granted him permission to use “Lose Yourself” in an effort to get people to the polls on election day.

In response to the revelation, Ramaswamy’s campaign promised to leave the rapping to the “real Slim Shady.” On August 29, the candidate declared during an appearance on Andrea Mitchell’s program that he would honor Eminem’s desires.

The 38-year-old tech entrepreneur argued that he had always identified with the rapper’s refusal to submit to authority. Ramaswamy has been attempting to demonstrate that he won’t do that, either. He implied that Eminem no longer challenges authority, but he said that he hopes the artist will one day “rediscover the renegade that made him great.”