Elton John has said Eminem is on a par with music legends like Jimi Hendrix and Mick Jagger. He made the comments in the new issue of Rolling Stone magazine, where the controversial rapper comes second in the magazine's Immortals edition.

The issue features the 50 greatest figures of rock 'n' roll with appreciations written by other artists. Elton, who performed with Eminem at the 2001 Grammy Award ceremony, said he "admired" the hip-hop star.

In his appreciation of Eminem, Elton wrote that he got goosebumps when he first rehearsed with Eminem for their Grammy show. The performance attracted criticism from gay groups who had denounced Eminem for his anti-homosexual lyrics.

Eminem has drawn frequent criticism for his lyrics, including accusations of homophobia and sexism. But Elton said: "From the start, I've always admired Eminem's thinking. That's the reason I wanted to appear on the Grammys with him when I was asked, despite all the nonsense talked about his being homophobic."

"Let the Boy Georges and the George Michaels of the world get up in a twist about it if they don't have the intelligence to see his intelligence."

Back to Headlines