Admittedly, because he didn't have the talent, but also because Diddy didn't know hot to promote him as well as Dre did. There were a lot of trial and error white rappers. Eminem just had the perfect storm of talent, timing and backing to blow up like he did.

>eminem's initial success was based on his lyrics.

No it wasn't. His initial success was based off "My Name Is..." which isn't exactly a lyrical onslaught, as well as "Guilty Conscience" which isn't, either. Those two huge singles showcased the goofball antics of a white kid with blonde hair and a great sense of humor, who had Dr. Dre's co-sign (Dre appeared in the video for the former, and featured in the latter..and produced both). Neither of these songs were outstanding showcases of his lyricism.


>there have been countless White acts before and after him who
>have failed to resonate with White or Black audiences.

See above.


>"stan" isn't one of the biggest and most widely known rap
>songs in the history of rap music because of affiliation,
>gimmicks.

Right. But there was a lot of time and music released before this song, and during that time we got the goofball Eminem.