Moby Defends Eminem as ‘Progressive’ and ‘Smart’ 25 Years After Their 2001 Feud

“It’s over, nobody listens to techno,” the rapper said of Moby in his 2002 song “Without Me”

Moby; Eminem.Credit : Cindy Ord/Getty; Etienne Laurent/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Moby is speaking about his past feud with Eminem.

The singer, 60, complimented Eminem despite their rocky past in an interview with The Times published on Friday, Feb. 20.

Moby called Eminem a “misogynist and homophobe and racist and antisemite” backstage at the 2001 Grammy Awards, according to the Los Angeles Times. The rapper, at the time, was up for four awards for his studio album The Marshall Mathers LP, including Best Rap Album and Best Album.

Eminem performs in Detroit in June 2024.Aaron J. Thornton/Getty

The rapper responded to Moby in his 2002 song “Without Me,” which featured the lyrics, “And Moby? You can get stomped by Obie / You thirty-six-year-old bald-headed f—, blow me / You don’t know me, you’re too old, let go / It’s over, nobody listens to techno.”

In the new interview, Moby, born Richard Melville Hall, insisted that his perspective on Eminem, real name Marshall Mathers, has changed. “As time has passed, Eminem’s proven himself to be very progressive, very smart. When he speaks out against Trump, against ICE, I’m like, ‘Wow, kudos to you.’ Eminem’s followers, they’re middle America and very inclined towards supporting Trump,” he said.

“No one’s surprised if Mark Ruffalo or me or whoever speaks out against Trump,” the “Feeling So Real” singer added.

Moby published a blog post on his website in 2002 when he heard of Eminem’s diss track, claiming that he felt “so amused.”

He doubled down on his comments at the award show, stating, “from my perspective any music that glorifies abuse, misogyny, homophobia or racism is disturbing, but especially so when it’s targeted to a fan base of 10-year-old boys.”

Moby revisited the beef in a 2023 episode of Steve-O’s Wild Ride, in which he remembered provoking Eminem even further in an interview with MTV.

Moby at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah in January 2026.Neilson Barnard/Getty

“I was doing an MTV interview, and the journalist asked me, like, ‘Why does Eminem have such an issue with you?’; And I said, ‘I don’t know. Maybe he’s closeted and he just wants to make out with me?’ That might have been my equivalent of pouring kerosene on the fire.”

“So in his case, maybe he has a very good reason to not like me when I thought I was just being funny, but clearly I’m not,” he said.

Moby released his 23rd studio album, Future Quiet, on Feb. 20. He is set to perform at the 2026 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April.