Who is the best rapper of all time?

Eminem broke down cultural barriers of rap

Question: Who is the best rapper of all time?
Position‹3 of 8›: Eminem is the best rapper
Argument: Eminem broke down cultural barriers of rap

Rap is a product of African-American culture. In 1999, Eminem proved that other cultures could successfully participate in the genre, and helped bring the music to more diverse audience.

The argument

Before Eminem became mainstream in 1999, the rap genre consisted almost entirely of black artists. There was very little diversity and, as a result, some racist elements often plagued the genre. While Tupac and The Notorious B.I.G. are incredibly gifted artists, they didn't have to fight their way into the culture. Eminem not only had to prove his worth as an artist, but he had to prove his worth as a white performer in a genre composed of predominantly black artists. When Eminem eventually broke these cultural barriers, he did so with immense success. His first album was certified triple platinum, his sophomore album went platinum within a week, and he is now the best selling hip hop artist of all time with 45 million albums sold. For these reasons, he is the best rapper of all time.

Premises

[P1]The best rapper of all time should be measured both by artistic achievement and by impact on the genre itself. [P2] Eminem broke cultural barriers by succeeding as a white artist in a predominantly black genre, something other greats did not have to overcome. [P3] He backed this barrier-breaking with unmatched commercial success, becoming the best-selling hip hop artist of all time. [C] Therefore, Eminem is the best rapper of all time.

Counter-arguments

While Eminem was the first mainstream white rapper, he is not solely responsible for diversifying the genre. Dr. Dre, a black rapper, played a large part in making Eminem what he is today by giving him a platform to display his artistic talents. Furthermore, rap is still a new genre and, like most new things, it is going to take time to diversify the medium. Any of the white rappers that came after Eminem could have broken these cultural barriers.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P2] The barrier-breaking is not his alone on the counter's account: Dr. Dre, a Black rapper, supplied the platform on which his work reached an audience, so the crossing was enabled from within the genre rather than achieved against it. [Rejecting P3] The counter also treats the achievement as contingent rather than singular, arguing that rap is a young genre that would diversify with time in any case and that any of the white rappers who followed could have crossed the same line, which weakens the claim that this particular career is what settles the question.