Rap star Eminem formally asked the candidate for Republican US presidential nominee Vivek Ramaswamy to stop “rapping” his songs in his election campaign, according to a letter made public yesterday.

Video of businessman Ramaswamy, who is enjoying a sudden rise in the race for the Republican primary election, in which he is seen “rapping” to the song “Lose Yourself” at a political event in Iowa, was widely circulated on social media a few weeks ago.

American music rights group BMI says in a letter published by the DailyMail and verified by AFP that it has received a “formal request” from Eminem, who claims that Ramaswamy no longer uses his music.

The political newcomer is now surprisingly third in the polls for the early 2024 Republican primary.

During his studies at Harvard he had distinguished himself for his rapping talent under the nickname “Da Vek”.

“If you think Vivek Ramaswamy orator is strong it’s because you haven’t met Da Vek yet,” the university’s student newspaper, The Crimson, humorously noted in 2006.

In the last two presidential elections in the USA, several well-known artists, including Pharrell Williams, Rihanna, Aerosmith or Adeleas the heirs of Princeprotested the use of their songs at Donald Trump’s campaign rallies.

The famous British rock band Rolling Stones had even threatened the Republican ex-president with legal action if he continued to use their hit ‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want’.