Michael Jordan is a true global icon. The impact he had on the sport of basketball is almost unmatched, and he helped basketball become one of the most popular sports in the world. As a result, a lot of people are fans of his work, even celebrities. But one famous rapper almost upset Michael Jordan on a phone call.
Legendary rapper Eminem spoke in an interview on ‘Sway On Shade 45’ a few years ago. During the interview, Eminem explained how he had a conversation with Michael Jordan on the phone, where he jokingly asked him to come to Detroit, Eminem’s hometown, so he could dunk on him.
Eminem noted that Jordan didn’t respond immediately, and he felt that he had upset Jordan. However, MJ then let out a laugh and they continued their conversation. After the call was over, Eminem thought that he had upset Michael Jordan, especially after watching how competitive Jordan could be during ‘The Last Dance’ docuseries (3:37 mark).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Gbkaw-m-e0
“I was on the phone with him (Jordan), we were talking, and everything was cool. He’s super cool, and everything was good until we get to the end of the phone call and I said, ‘Yo man, when are you gonna come to Detroit so I can dunk on you?’. It was crickets. I don’t remember exactly what he said, but I think he just kinda was like, ‘Ha ha ha.’ Like laughed. And I remember getting off the phone going, ‘Oh my God, I think I might have just blew it’. To me, in my head, it was completely a total joke, right!? It’s so ridiculous for me to think that I could dunk on Jordan. So in my head, you know, it’s one of those things that you think is gonna be funnier in your head then when you actually say it. When I got off the phone I remember thinking I don’t think he knew I was joking because you know he’s very… I mean watching this documentary (The Last Dance) like him he’s very competitive.”
Eminem may have been joking, but Jordan might not have appreciated him saying that. Perhaps MJ eventually passed it off as a joke. Given that Eminem is from Detroit, a city that had a massive rivalry with Jordan’s Chicago Bulls, it is a little surprising how much Eminem reveres MJ.
Eminem is not the only rapper to have upset Michael Jordan. A few months ago, rapper Kanye West revealed that Michael Jordan would not meet with him because of a song lyric where he suggest his Yeezy shoes had ‘jumped over’ Jumpman. Jordan may have laughed it off, but there’s every chance that Jordan ‘took it personally’.
