EMINEM’S ROCK & Roll Hall of Fame induction is a complicated honor given the institution’s history of overlooking hip-hop’s most influential and pioneering Black artists, but Saturday night’s induction ceremony was a celebration of his contributions to the genre nonetheless.

The rapper himself acknowledged that fact in his induction speech, quipping that there were probably a few reasons why he wasn’t supposed to be there Saturday night. “I know that I’m a rapper, and this is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and there’s only a few of us right now who have been inducted in already. (The second, Em joked, “I almost died from an overdose in 2007, which kind of sucked because — Hailie, plug your ears — because drugs were fucking delicious.”)

Eminem spent the bulk of his speech name-checking the myriad rappers — from cult heroes to his multi-platinum peers — who inspired him and made his career possible. “Those were my rock stars, man,” Em said. “And I just want to say, those are just a few of the names that I hope will be considered in the future for induction. Because without them, a lot of us wouldn’t be here. I know I wouldn’t.”

READ THE FULL STORY AT ROLLINGSTONE