Longtime radio exec Damizza was managing Mariah Carey when Eminem came calling with a role in “8 Mile”. What started as a casting call ended in Detroit behind closed doors.
Damizza’s career has been anything but ordinary. From studio assistant at age 12 to running LA’s Power 106 and New York’s Hot 97, he helped break some of the biggest names in show business, including Eminem. And over the years, he has collected stories that are legendary, wild, and, in this case, downright spicy.
Appearing recently on the TFU Podcast, Damizza dropped a bomb about the origins of Eminem’s short-lived but much-discussed relationship with Mariah Carey. According to him, it all started with a movie offer and a surprising twist.
Damizza, who was working closely with Mariah at the time producing records, managing her day-to-day, and looking out for her well-being, says he got a call from Steve Stoute, relaying Eminem’s interest in meeting the pop icon. The idea was to cast Mariah for a role in “8 Mile”.
At first, Damizza was hesitant. “I’m not getting in the middle of that. I know how this ends”, he recalled saying. But knowing that turning down a movie role without telling her might backfire, he brought it up gently. “Eminem wants to meet you”, he told her. Mariah’s first response was a hard no. But once he mentioned the movie, her attitude shifted: “What’s his number?”
Sensing potential trouble, Damizza called Em to set boundaries. “Don’t do this”, he warned, concerned it might go the same way Em’s public jabs at Christina Aguilera and others had. Em insisted his interest was genuine.
So Damizza connected them on a three-way call. What happened next was not exactly smooth.
“The first thing out of [Eminem’s] mouth is, ‘I want you to play my mother’”. Unsurprisingly, Mariah did not take that well. “Her insecurities kicked in big time”, Damizza said. But instead of ending things, that moment marked a turning point.
From there, it was Mariah who made the next moves. “It was her chasing him, not him chasing her”, Damizza claimed. He described a trip where they were flying from New York to LA, only for Mariah to casually mention they’d be making a detour to Detroit. “Next thing I know, we are at Eminem’s house… and they disappear. The second they went into his room, literally, I was like, I’m going back to LA. There is no point of me being here. It went from business to fucking”.
As for whether they actually dated? Damizza doesn’t hesitate: “Yes”.
And while he admits he played a role in connecting them, he wants no credit or blame for what came after.
