5 Cases of Hip-Hop Fans-Turned-Frenemies

Hip-hop is a very competitive game. Sometimes that competitive firepower yields some of the best music. Occasionally, it turns friends into enemies. Here are 5 creepiest cases of fans-turned-frenemies.

5. Canibus and LL Cool J

Before the diss songs (damn good diss songs, if I may add) Canibus adored LL Cool J. So much so that Bis became obsessed with a tattooed mic and challenged LL to a battle. That mic tat was the subject of discussion on many a Canibus songs. Eventually, Canibus called Cool J and apologized for his actions, while constantly reminding LL that he was an idol.

4. Joe Budden and Jay-Z

Joe Budden was supposed to be the next Jay-Z. Though his debut album didn't exactly do Jay-Z numbers, Joey's admiration for his erstwhile Def Jam boss has been well documented. In fact, if you threw Budden's musical DNA under a microscope you'll probably find traces of Jay-Z's style in it. However, things went sour between the two after Budden parted ways with Def Jam. It's unclear whether Jay-Z had any role to play in his exit, but Joe Budden wasn't asking questions. He unleashed several subliminal disses on his idol, including "Talk to 'Em" freestyle where he rapped: "Take off the blazer, loosen’ up the tie. N***a fell in love and Superman died."

3. The Source and Eminem

The Source has clearly had a love-hate relationship with Eminem. One moment the house that Dave Mays and Benzino built was lauding Eminem in their 'Unsigned Hype' column, the next moment they were waging an all-out war against the global phenom they once cosigned.

2. Jay-Z and Nas

© Def Jam

It's entirely possible that prior to his Reasonable Doubt days, Jay-Z would ride around blasting Nas' Illmatic on max. There's an overwhelming evidence pointing to Jay-Z's admiration for Nas' lyricism. First, Jay actually invited his fellow NY rapper to collaborate with him on Reasonable Doubt, but Nas allegedly flaked out. Jay-Z also sampled Nas twice on "Dead Presidents II" and "Rap Game/Crack Game." Five years later, the two were engulfed in one of the greatest hip-hop battles ever. They later squashed the beef and went on to collaborate on three songs, including Nas' "Black Republican."

1. The Game and Jay-Z

The Game has built an entire career off of beef. Sometimes that means hurling insults at his idols to round up some buzz. Game has been known to namedrop Jay-Z in songs, yet he couldn't resist the urge to attack Jigga on various songs, including the latest "I'm So Wavy." Interestingly enough, Jay-Z has chosen to ignore him which seems to irk Game more.