John Cena Reveals Surprising Picks For Mount Rushmore Of Rappers

John Cena used to rap. It feels like a lifetime ago, and in some ways, it was. In the two decades since Cena dropped his debut album, he’s become a household name and a bankable movie star. He doesn’t need music to bolster his fame anymore. That said, he still has a love for the genre. John Cena recently went on the Club Shay Shay podcast, and was asked to break down his four favorite emcees. His Mount Rushmore. His answers were unexpected, but admittedly pretty airtight in terms of logic (no, Logic is not one of his picks).

John Cena knew his answer would be controversial. He tried to get out in front of the inevitable pushback he’d get for excluding certain rappers. “Everyone has their bias,” he noted. “I know the list is gonna incite riots, [but] we all have our bias, our favorites. That’s what makes music special.” Despite his reticence, John Cena took the bait. He told host Shannon Sharpe that New York artists made up the bulk of his Mount Rushmore: Nas, JAY-Z and Rakim. “But I was brought up in East Coast, boom bap,” he explained. “I love wordplay, I love poetry. It’s what I based my [WWE] character on.”

John Cena’s fourth choice? Eminem. The decision to show Slim Shady love should come as no surprise to longtime Cena fans. The wrestler-turned-actor has been an admirer of Em’s since day one. He even tried to manifest a remix to his iconic theme song with the Detroit rapper. “He’s one of the most gifted, prolific poets I’ve ever had the chance to listen to,” John Cena told Esquire in 2022. “I think if you gave him this music.. I would like to think he would completely put me to shame by giving it his own Eminem touch.”

John Cena is obviously more famous as a wrestler than a rapper. That said, he claims the latter saved his wrestling career. During a 2023 appearance on the Whiskey Ginger podcast, Cena claimed that his raps actually kept him employed. He claimed that Stephanie McMahon, daughter of WWE executive chairman Vince McMahon, was impressed with Cena’s rhymes and gave him more screen time as a result. “She was the head of the writing team,” the wrestler recalled. “And she was like, ‘Well, make something up about me right now.'” The rest, as they say, is history.