The six-minute video, which appeared on “The Marshall Mathers LP 2,” sees the Detroit native showing off his lyrical prowess while taking shots at rap peers including Tyler The Creator, Joe Budden, and Machine Gun Kelly.
On Friday, Eminem gave the video its final push over the finish line by sharing a short clip on his Instagram and Twitter pages, along with the caption: “‘Everybody loves to root for a nuisance’ #RapGod countdown to 1 billion.”
“Rap God” is the third Eminem video to eclipse the benchmark. His track “Not Afraid” and “Love the Way You Lie,” featuring Rihanna, have also surpassed 1 billion views on YouTube.
Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito,” is currently the most-streamed video on YouTube, having racked up over 6.6 billion views as of Monday.
“Gangnam Style,” the 2012 megahit by South Korean musician Psy, was the first video to surpass one billion views. The catchy dance track, which topped the charts in 27 countries, according to the Official Charts Company, and spawned thousands of online parodies, currently has more than 3.5 billion views.
