Eminem is a legend of rap music, a talented singer, composer, producer and actor. Most of the rapper's songs are autobiographical and tell about his difficult path to fame.
Childhood
Marshall Bruce Mathers III is Eminem's real name. At the age of 15, his mother, aspiring singer Debbie Nelson, married musician Marshall Bruce Mathers Jr.
On October 17, 1972, in the city of St. Joseph, Missouri, the couple gave birth to a boy, who was named after his father - Marshall Bruce Mathers III.
When Marshall was 8 months old, his father left, leaving eighteen-year-old Debbie alone. It was very difficult for the young mother to raise her child alone.
As a child with my mother
In search of a better life, the family constantly moved from state to state. Because of this, the boy had no friends, he changed schools very often and lived with his mother in a travel trailer for almost his entire childhood.
When Marshall was 12 years old, his family finally settled in the African-American neighborhood of Detroit. Apart from them, there were only two white-skinned residents in the block, so the family got into trouble.
Coma and moving
At school, the boy had no friends; all his classmates were dark-skinned and constantly bullied and humiliated him because of the color of his skin. His main enemy was DiAngelo Bailey, a student 2 grades older than Marshall.
In the winter of 1983, Bailey and his friends brutally beat Marshall on the street. The boy fell into a coma and lay in the hospital for 10 days until doctors revived him.
After this, Marshall’s mother seriously thought about moving. A year after the incident, Debbie and her son moved to Kansas City.
In childhood and youth
In 1985, Marshall's younger brother was born, the boy was named Nathan. Soon, her stepfather left her mother, and Debbie raised her two sons herself.
In Kansas City, Marshall became friends with Ronnie's mother's brother, who became the boy's best friend. Ronnie loved rap music, and one day brought nine-year-old Mathers Ice T's "Reckless" record.
Marshall really liked the record and decided that he also wanted to become a rap artist. At the age of 13, Marshall began writing his own rap.
Despite the humiliation of black MCs who believed that “whites” had no place in rap, Marshall began to win rap battles and over time gained the respect of his peers. At the same time, the boy came up with the pseudonym “M&M”, which transformed into the famous nickname “Eminem”.
At school, Eminem failed 5 transfer exams, after which the future star was kicked out of the ninth grade. Then his mother told Mathers to look for a job.
Marshall tried many professions, trying to somehow help his mother: he worked as a waiter, a cook, and a seasonal worker. The boy even performed live at night on a local radio station.
At the age of 19, Eminem suffered a bereavement - his uncle Roney, who had long been Marshall's best friend, committed suicide by shooting himself with a shotgun.
The beginning of a musical career
In 1995, Eminem became a member of the group Soul Intent, which also included his best friend Proof and DJ Butterfingers.
The beginning group did not find sponsors, so the circulation of the record with the first tracks was negligible, and now this record is almost impossible to find.
The following year, Eminem recorded his first album, “Infinite,” which, however, was not to the taste of listeners.
It was replicated by one independent studio. The studio managed to sell about a thousand copies of the album, then the contract with the performer was terminated.
The failure of the album, which Eminem later called only a demo album, hurt the young artist. Marshall became addicted to alcohol and drugs.
Then Mathers was on the verge of suicide: he was desperately trying to find a normal job. The rapper had no money at all, so his friends bought clothes for Marshall.
Hoping to win, Marshall went to the Rap Olympics competition in Los Angeles. Having failed, Mathers was already thinking about quitting rap.
Desperate, Eminem made one last attempt to gain recognition - he distributed his demo tape “The Real Slim Shady LP” to recording studios in Los Angeles.
The idea of creating the character “Slim Shady” came completely unexpectedly - the rapper came up with bright rhymes under his pseudonym “Eminem”, but nothing worked.
Then suddenly he had an epiphany - he came up with an alter ego and called him Slim Shady. Slim, according to Marshall, was the dark side of the rapper - he read daring, immoral lyrics.
A stunning success
Luck smiled on Marshall in 1999. Quite by accident, the famous producer and musician Dr. Dre found The Slim Shady EP in the garage of Jimmy Iovine, head of Interscope Records.
After listening to the compositions, the producer was amazed by the talent of the young rapper. He called Marshall back and offered to re-release the record under his label.
The same year, the official album “Slim Shady LP” was released, which created a real sensation in rap culture: the white-skinned rap artist had incredible talent and read shocking lyrics about violence and racial discrimination.
Following the record, the first video clip “My Name Is” was released, which was constantly played on all music channels.
In 2000, Eminem's second studio album, The Marshall Mathers LP, was released, in which the rapper sang on his own behalf.
In his songs, Eminem was not afraid to make fun of modern society, to sing about racial and sexual political incorrectness, so there were always heated debates around his songs.
His mother sued the singer because he spoke very rudely about her in one of his songs. Then the LGBT community came out against Eminem.
In the summer of the same year, Eminem participated in the recording of the debut album of the group “D12” entitled “Devil’s Night”.
In the spring of 2002, Eminem released the video “Without Me”, after which the third album “The Eminem Show” was released. The album sold more than 20 million copies, becoming diamond certified.
In April 2004, Eminem again performed as a member of the group “D12”, recording the album “D12 World” and releasing the video “My Band”.
Career break
In November of the same year, the fifth collection of songs, Encore, was released. Unlike previous albums, “Encore” did not receive a single Grammy statuette; the white-skinned rapper lost to Kanye West in almost all nominations.
Critics considered the album unsuccessful, and soon rumors spread that this was the artist's last album. In 2005, Eminem’s hit collection “Curtain Call: The Hits” was released; it included only 3 new compositions.
Of these, "Shake That" and "When I'm Gone" were released as singles.
A year later, the next collection “Eminem Presents: The Re-Up” was released. The rapper recorded this collection at his own studio, Shady Records, which he founded back in 1999.
In 2007, the performer recorded a joint song with rapper 50Cent and the song “Touchdown” with T.I. After this, Eminem went on a “sabbatical” for more than a year and a half; the reason was the singer’s drug addiction.
Return of a Legend
At the beginning of 2008, together with Dr. Dre and 50 Cent, Eminem recorded the song “Crack The Bottle”, at the same time the rapper announced that work on a new album would soon be completed.
Already in the spring, the video “We Made You”, the singles “Beautiful”, “Old Time’s Sake” and “3 a.m.” were released. In May 2009, the sixth album entitled “Relapse” was released.
In December of the same year, the rapper released a reissue of the album called “Relapse: Refill”, which included 7 songs, including the song “Forever”, recorded with Drake, Lil Wayne and Kanye West.
Initially it was reported that the second part of the album “Relapse” would be released, but then information appeared that there would be no second part; instead, the rapper recorded a new album “Recovery”.
The album became the best-selling album in the States in 2010. Eminem recorded some tracks in the album together with other equally popular artists: Rihanna, Lil Wayne, Pink and Kobe.
In 2013, the world saw the rapper’s eighth album, entitled “The Marshall Mathers LP 2.” Among the songs was the famous composition “Rap God”, in which Eminem set a new world record. In 6 minutes and 4 seconds, Eminem managed to say 1,560 words.
In 2015, the rapper released 4 tracks, 2 of which he recorded as a member of the group “Bad Meets Evil”. At the moment, the artist's new album is expected to be released. Eminem's collection of awards includes 15 Grammy statuettes and an Oscar award.
Sound recording studio
In 1999, Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg founded Shady Records.
D12, Obie Trice, Stat Quo, Bobby Creekwater, Cashis recorded their tracks under the label of this studio. In December 2006, the studio released a compilation album entitled “Eminem Presents: The Re-Up”.
The album, according to Eminem, turned out so good that the rapper released this mixtape as a full-length album.
Movies
In 2001, Eminem played a cameo role in the film “The Wash.” However, the rapper's real debut is considered to be the 2002 film 8 Mile, which, as the performer states, is semi-biographical.
The film provides insight into the legendary rapper's life in Detroit, his development as a performer, and the challenges Eminem faced.
Eminem recorded the song “Lose Yourself” for the film. For it, the rapper was awarded an Oscar film award in the category “Best Song for a Film.”
Eminem voiced a cop in the video game 50 Cent: Bulletproof and Billy Fletcher in the Talking Dolls show.
Most often, the rapper plays himself in films: he played a cameo role in the films “Pranksters”, “Beautiful Men”, “Rap as Art”, “Detroit Rubber” and “Interview”.
Books and charity
In 2001, the rapper wrote the book “Angry Blonde,” which included all the freestyles released at that time, as well as comments on them.
In 2008, the autobiography “The Way I Am” was released, in which the singer talks in detail about his life troubles, drug addiction, fame, and depression. The book became a bestseller that year.
Following Eminem’s memoirs, his mother Debbie released the book “My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem,” in which she talked about her acquaintance with the rapper’s father, Eminem’s childhood, his rise to fame, and then his struggle with popularity.
Eminem also created his own charitable foundation, money from which goes to help disadvantaged families in Michigan.
In 2015, Eminem visited a fan who was suffering from cancer. 17-year-old Gage was incredibly happy from meeting the performer, but the next day after the visit the boy died.
Personal life
Marshall met his chosen one at school. At that time, the boy was 15 years old, and Kimberly Ann Scott was only 13.
At age 15, Kim ran away from home with her twin sister Dawn and began living with the Mathers. In 1989, Kim and Marshall began dating; in 1999, the lovers legalized their relationship.
By that time, they were already raising their daughter Hayley, who was born in 1995. However, the marriage did not last long, and the couple divorced in 2001.
C Kimberly Ann
5 years after the divorce, Marshall and Kim got married again, but the marriage lasted only six months. The couple separated again, agreeing to co-parent Hayley.
Eminem loves his daughter very much and has repeatedly mentioned her in songs; the songs “Mockingbird” and “Hailie’s Song” were dedicated to the girl.
After the divorce, Eminem was credited with having affairs with many celebrities: Beyoncé, Tara Reid and Mariah Carey, but all this turned out to be rumors.
The rapper dated actress Brittany Andrews for several months; in 2002 he began a relationship with Brittany Murphy, but this relationship did not last long.
Haley's own daughter
In addition to his own daughter, Eminem has two adopted children. Marshall adopted Kimberly's sister Alana Scott's child and Kim's first daughter Whitney. Marshall is also the legal guardian of his younger brother Nathan.
Scandals
Eminem has often been the culprit of scandals, in most cases the reason was not his actions, but the lyrics of his songs.
In 1999, the performer’s mother sued him for libel: the woman claimed that her son spoke negatively about her in songs from the album “The Slim Shady LP.”
In June 2000, Marshall was arrested due to an argument with Douglas Dale. The day after the incident, the performer saw his wife kissing John Guererra.
Marshall Bruce Mathers III, aka Eminem, aka Slim Shady, aka Ken Caniff, is an American rapper, 83rd on the list of the hundred greatest musicians of all time, the King of Hip-Hop and the best-selling artist of the 2000s. Ten of his albums reached number one on the Billboard 200, and in total he sold more than 100,000,000 album copies.
Born on October 17, 1972 in Missouri, in the town of St. Joseph. The father left his wife and child early and never saw his son again. The mother of the future Eminem, Debbie Nelson, traveled quite a bit around the country before settling in the black suburb of Detroit - there was not enough money for anything better.
The white kid had a hard time at the black school. One day, young Marshal was beaten in the toilet so much that he fell into a coma for ten days. The beatings were led by DiAngelo Bailey, an absolutely frostbitten sixth grade thug. However, life put everything in its place - in 2001, Bailey was a garbage man, and Eminem was a world star. A narrow-minded garbage man decided that the song “Brain Damage,” where Eminem described what was happening in those years, hurt some of his feelings, and filed a lawsuit. However, the judge, after listening to testimony in the spirit of “I did everything right, this white man should have been taught a lesson!”, dismissed the claim.
Eminem made a firm decision to become a rapper, and, overcoming many attacks, began to participate in battles. His best friend Proof provided him with considerable support. Together with him, Marshall recorded his first amateur release, with the group Soul Intent, followed by his first solo album, “Infinite”.
However, for Detroit at that time, no one needed another hip-hop album, and even from a white dude. The failure discouraged the aspiring rapper, but did not stop him. In 1997, he released the mini-album “The Slim Shady EP”, where his “double” appeared for the first time - Slim Shady, much more angry and aggressive, with a kind of dark humor, reading texts about violence and drug use. The lyrics themselves have become much better - complex and original rhymes have appeared, and a message has appeared in the songs.
The record was noticed by one of the rapper’s idols, who was delighted with it. With his help, the full version of the album was published, which brought Eminem his first fame. The clip was constantly shown on TV channels, sales broke all records.
American society was divided into several polar groups: some were delighted with the humor, accuracy and relevance of the lyrics of the new rap star, others, in particular the association of gays and lesbians, were shocked by the rudeness and aggression in Eminem’s songs. In the future, American gays and lesbians will repeatedly sue him, organize protests, and accuse him of homophobia. More than once he will have to speak out on the issue of attitude towards these population groups, and one day he will even sing a duet with. This attitude is briefly conveyed by the phrase from the interview “I don’t care!”
Throughout the 2000s, Eminem remained the most popular rapper in the world. Almost every new release, for example, songs like or (duet with Dido) with almost 100% probability hit the top lines of the charts.
In 2002, the film “Eight Mile” was released, telling about the musician’s early years. Eminem received an Oscar for the song for this film.
In 1999, Marshall married his high school sweetheart, Kimberly Ann Scott. The marriage turned out to be, if not unhappy, then very difficult. Before the wedding, their relationship lasted ten years; in 1995, four years before marriage, their daughter Hayley was born. In 2000, Eminem received a two-year suspended sentence for assaulting a bar bouncer his wife was kissing in a parking lot. This was followed by a divorce, and in 2006 - a new wedding. This time the marriage lasted even less - they divorced again that same year. 2006 generally turned out to be a difficult year for Eminem - in April, his longtime friend Proof was killed in a shootout. Eminem dedicated two songs to his death: and.
In 2014, New Zealand's ruling party released a campaign video. It featured a slightly modified melody from “Lose Yourself.” According to representatives, they bought the instrumental on the website - it was signed as “in the style of Eminem.” The rapper's side filed a lawsuit. The judge ruled in favor of the rapper and ordered the party to pay $400 thousand.- White
Eminem is the most famous rapper in the world. However, he is white. On the track “White America,” Marshall discusses how being white has influenced his career. “When I was underground, no one gave a fuck I was white,” he raps. The idea is that his skin color helped his career a lot. “No one would listen to me if I were black” is one of the main ideas of the song. As a result, a white guy in a black genre became the best-selling rapper in the world.
- Vicodin and Valium
Two painkillers from Eminem's long list of tablet experiences. He said that he started using in small doses, but gradually increased the pace. The result was an overdose in 2007. “The first time I tried Vicodin I was like, wow.” I not only felt pleasant, I stopped feeling pain. I don't remember when this became a problem. I felt better and better on the pills. People tried to explain to me that I was sick. Fuck them. It’s not heroin or coke,” Eminem said in the film “How To Make Money Selling Drugs.”
- “Eight Mile”
A cult film about battle rap starring Eminem. The action takes place in Detroit. Marshall plays an aspiring rapper named B-Rabbit and his goal is to win a battle tournament reminiscent of the arcade mode of Mortal Kombat, and at the end face the local Shao Kahn. The soundtrack to the film was the track “Lose Yourself” - a song that, perhaps, was not more important in the artist’s career. It also brought Marshall an Academy Award. The rapper missed the award ceremony because he did not believe in his own success.
- Gays
The rapper more than once offended the LGBT community in his lines, and they wrote complaints about discrimination. Marshall's performance on the same stage with Sir Elton John in 2001 did not help relieve the tension. The famous singer, by the way, greatly helped the rapper overcome addiction, and Eminem even gave him two diamond penis rings for his wedding. The “reckoning” came in 2009 at the MTV ceremony. Actor Sacha Baron Cohen, in the image of his movie gay alter ego Bruno, descended on a rope in a Cupid costume onto Eminem sitting in the audience. It's better to see once. Later, however, it became known that the trick was rigged. Eminem said that when he returned to the hotel, he laughed at this joke for several hours.
Later, in an interview with the NY Times, the rapper explained that he does not have any hostility towards gays and even supports same-sex marriage. “If two people love each other, then why not? I believe everyone should have an equal chance of being unhappy.” - said the artist.
- The Dirty Dozen
She is also the group D12 (dirty dozen). The group consisted of Eminem and five of his school friends. The team was a trash tent from the world of rap and rapped mainly about drugs, dirty sex and reprisals against haters. Following the death of member Proof in 2006, the group's activity declined. “Purple Pills” is one of the band’s most famous songs. It contained so many references to drugs and sex that it was broadcast on radio in a censored version. So she changed the name to “Purple Hills”. A particularly nasty verse from Bizzare even had to be cut completely.
In 2015, D12 (already in the trio format Swift, Bizarre and Kuniwa) came to the Cubana festival. There, Bizarre was shot during a bar fight.
- Detroit
Eminem's hometown. From Marshall's stories, this is such a huge factory for the production of hopelessness. The city, which was the capital of the American auto industry, experienced an economic crisis and population outflow in the 2000s, and went bankrupt in 2013. Marshall, despite everything, loves this place. “We will never turn our backs on you, because we are you. My home,” he writes in a letter to Detroit.
In 2015, the song “Detroit Vs. Everybody,” the city’s rap anthem. Not only Eminem, but also fellow countrymen Royce Da 5’9”, Danny Brown and Big Sean read on it. Later a remix was released with the rest of the Detroit gang.
- Dr. Dre
Doc and Marshall met by chance: in the garage of the director of Interscope Records, Doc found the “Slim Shady EP” and became interested in the young talent. By that time, Eminem had already released his debut album “Infinite,” which was a sales failure. Marshall is depressed and hasn't been rapping for six months. Dre finds the rapper, and so begins their long-term collaboration.
Thanks to Dre, the “Slim Shady EP” turns into the full-length album “Slim Shady LP”, which made Eminem a star. The success was cemented by the video for the song “My Name Is” - the artist’s first hit.
- “The Eminem Show”
Fourth studio album, 2002. This time is considered the peak of Marshall’s creative form, and “Eminem Show” itself is, if not his best album, then very close to it. Eminem talked about serious things: racism, politics and the impact of music on society. At the same time, he remained the same embittered psycho, juggling rhymes and verbal ulcers. You can read about the record in our material. - Fat Eminem
Now Marshall is in excellent physical shape, but in 2007 the rapper seriously gained weight due to his addiction to Vicodin and Valium. The drugs affected his stomach and he had to eat away the pain. By that time, the rapper weighed 104 kilograms. Everything changed after the overdose. Marshall came out of rehab and decided to lose weight. He ran 27 kilometers a day and did the “Madness” program. .
- “Infinite”
Debut album 1996. The record was released with Detroit rap radio stations in mind, but no one there needed the release either. The few reviewers who heard the album accused Marshall of copying the style of Nas and AZ. Thematically, “Infinite” was very different from the rapper’s subsequent albums. Marshall read about the desire to become rich, the difficulties of raising a young daughter, and his love for his girlfriend Kim. On subsequent releases, the rapper will begin to behave shockingly, put down the stars and wish Kim death.
- Kim
They met in Marshall's mother's house - street children were constantly hanging around there. He was 15 at that time, she was 12. A few years later, the couple had a daughter, Hayley. Over the next few years, Marshall and Kim's relationship goes from bad to worse.
Eminem dedicated three songs to Kim: “Searching,” “97 Bonnie & Clyde,” and “Kim.” If the first one is a declaration of love, then the last two are a badiebag in the literal sense of the word. In the text of “97 Bonnie & Clyde,” Marshall and his daughter throw Kim’s dead body into the lake. To record his daughter’s voice, the rapper had to lie to his wife that he was just going out to eat with her.
Little known fact: Eminem actually has three daughters - Hailie, Alaina and Whitney. Haley is her own child, Alaina is adopted, but Whitney was born from Kim and her boyfriend Eric Khater, but Marshall later adopted her.
- Shady Records
Label founded by Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg in 1999. The first signatories are the group D12 and rapper Obie Trice. In 2002, aspiring rapper 50 Cent joined the label. You know what happened to him next. He left the label in 2014.
A series of cartoons was released to mark the label's 15th anniversary “ShadyXV Quinceañera”- brutal short films in the style of early Disney.
The current lineup of Shady Records besides Eminem: D12, Slaughterhouse, Skylar Gray, Yelawolf, Westside & Conway, Boogie.
- Eminem
A name that everyone knows. But not everyone knows where it came from and what it means. At the beginning of his career, the rapper called himself M&M after the first letters of his first and last name. He later changed his stage name to Eminem. There is also a version that the rapper did this because of possible problems with the M&Ms company. Another fan theory is that Eminem means “Every Mom Is Nice Except Mine.” - Humor
Eminem is known for his funny videos: he either dresses up as a superhero with a huge fake ass, or sarcastically attacks several celebrities, or parodies Elvis or his own mother. This applies mainly to his character Slim Shady, since today's Eminem prefers to remain more serious in his songs. To see Marshall's comedic talent, check out this compilation of his best moments from interviews and late-night shows.
Rolling Stone magazine called Eminem the “King of Hip-Hop” and ranked him 83rd on its list of the 100 greatest artists on the planet. The most influential chart company Nielsen Sound Scan proclaimed the musician the sales leader of the 2000s, because in 10 years the singer’s fans bought 100 million albums, which no other artist has achieved.
The American rapper, producer, composer and actor has won 15 Grammy and Oscar awards. MTV ranked Eminem 9th on its "Greatest MCs of All Time" list and 13th on its "22 Greatest Voices in Music" list.
Childhood and youth
Marshall Bruce Mathers III was born in the provincial town of St. Joseph, Missouri on October 17, 1972. The day the future rap star was born fell on the zodiac sign Libra. He is the only child of singer Debbie Mathers-Briggs, who married a musician 8 years older at age 15. Eminem has Scottish, English, German, Swiss and Polish blood in his veins.
When his son was six months old, his father abandoned his 18-year-old wife and their baby. Marshall never saw Dad again. Wanting to get out of poverty, Debbie moved with the boy from state to state. We stopped in a suburb of Detroit with an African-American population, where the future star went to school. Children regularly beat up a white classmate. In the winter of 1983, Marshall suffered so much that doctors took him out of a coma for 10 days.
In the mid-80s, the family returned to Kansas City, where Eminem became close to his mother's brother Ronnie. In 1987, his uncle, a rap fan, gave his nephew a cassette tape by American musician Tracy Marrow, known as rapper Ice T. Marrow's music changed Marshall Mathers' ideas about rap.
Eminem fell so in love with the musical direction that he never dreamed of anything else. The musician took part in battles and won over the audience, overcoming the attacks of black MCs. They argued that rap is a musical direction of blacks, and whites are a priori incapable of becoming rappers.
His friend and member of the group D-12 Proof played a huge role in Eminem’s creative biography. The 17-year-old boy had a collection of his own compositions, which he performed in nightclubs. At this time, he took the pseudonym “M&M”, which transformed into Eminem (“Em-and-Em”).
At the age of 17, Eminem put an end to his school studies and devoted himself to music. To earn a living, the musician washed dishes in a restaurant kitchen and performed on nightly broadcasts of a local radio station.
Music
In 1995, the rapper made his debut as part of the group Soul Intent, which was left by Proof and DJ Butterfingers. With the team, Eminem recorded the disc Biterphobi, which became a rarity: due to the lack of money and sponsors, it was released in a meager circulation. The musicians dedicated the track Fucking backstabber to the African-American rapper Champtown.
In 1996, the musician released his debut solo album Infinite, which fans did not notice due to the oversaturation of Detroit with rap. The failure plunged Eminem into depression - for two years alcohol and drugs occupied the main place in his life. The singer was in the care of his wife and one-year-old daughter, for whom he could not even buy diapers. The artist admitted that he was on the verge of suicide and was looking for a “normal” job.
The black rapper Dr. helped the musician return to creativity. Dre (), Eminem's idol since childhood. The musician found Marshall's demo record and became interested in the young performer.
In 1999, Dr. Dre forced Eminem to re-release the Slim Shady EP, and it became a hit.
The singer took second place in the Rap Olympics super battle held in Los Angeles. The informal “white” rapper received an award from Word Up! and signed a contract with Dr Dre. The venerable musician worked with a young colleague on his first full-length studio album, The Slim Shady LP (1999), which turned Eminem into a world-famous star.
Eminem - Go To SleepIn the early 2000s, the singer was at the peak of his popularity: the albums The Marshall Mathers LP (2000), The Eminem Show (2002), Encore (2004), Curtain Call: The Hits (2005) broke sales records. The most striking hits were Guilty Conscience, 97 Bonnie & Clyde, My Name Is, Role Model, The Way I Am, I'm Back, White America and Mosh.
The sharp lyrics of the compositions caused heated debate: some believed that Eminem was revealing the ulcers of society, others - that it incited hatred towards women, sexual minorities and humanity. The singer admitted that he says shocking words, but does not do anything shocking and does not dream of becoming -2.
Eminem - Im Sorry MamaThe Marshall Mathers LP is chock-full of lyrics that have sparked debate. The song The Real Slim Shady became a hit. Eminem also sang the track “Stan” with the singer. A provocative video was recorded for the composition.
Eminem and Dido - StanIn one of the songs on the album, the musician spoke unflatteringly about his mother, and she sued her son. The Homosexual Association said it would respond to the artist's Grammy nomination with a boycott. But in 2001, the musician was awarded the award three times.
In the same year, Eminem became a member of the group D12, which released the album Devil's Night in 2002. The compositions Fight Music and Purple Pills instantly gained wild popularity.
In 2002, the video Without Me appeared and the album The Eminem Show was released. The disc became diamond certified: 20 million copies were sold worldwide.
Due to a 7-year pause in creativity, rumors arose that the rapper had stopped his career. But in 2009, the artist pleased fans with two solo albums, Relapse and Refill. In 2010, the album Recovery was released, which included a joint composition with Love The Way You Lie, which received 1 billion 300 million views on YouTube.
In 2013, Eminem worked on his 8th album, The Marshall Mathers LP 2, which he presented in November. All this time, the musician successfully performed in concerts.
In the third single from Rap God's 8th studio album, the rapper speaks 1,560 words in 6 minutes and 4 seconds. Eminem is the first person in history to collect more than 78 million likes on Facebook.
Movies
In 2001, the singer played a cameo role in the film “Moika,” but his full-fledged film debut was the 2002 film “8 Mile,” which he called semi-biographical. The film should not be taken as a biography of the artist; the film gives an idea of the teenage period. Fans saw the star in the image of a beggar rapper Jimmy Smith. The soundtrack to “8 Mile” Lose Yourself brought Eminem an Oscar statuette.
In the video game 50 Cent: Bulletproof, the artist voiced the corrupt cop McVicar. Eminem appeared as a doll in the television program Talking Dolls and the web cartoon series The Slim Shady Show, shown on television and later on DVD.
The musician performed a cameo in Judd Apatow’s tragicomedy “Pranksters,” and starred in the season 7 finale of the TV series “Entourage,” entitled Lose Yourself.
Eminem - BeautifulIn 2012, the actor starred in two documentaries - “Rap as Art” and “How to Make Money Selling Drugs.” Two years later, the action comedy “The Interview” was released, in which Eminem appeared as himself. Internet sales of the film brought Sony Pictures $40 million.
In October 2008, the rapper released his autobiography, The Way I Am, openly talking about his struggles with poverty, drug addiction, depression and fame. Debbie Nelson's mother also wrote an autobiography entitled "My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem."
Personal life
Eminem has been married to Kimberly Ann Scott twice. Marshall met his future wife at school - at one time, due to problems in the family, Kim and her twin sister lived in the musician’s house. The young people dated for ten years, after which they got married in 1999. The beginning of family life coincided with the rise of the rapper's career - the marriage lasted until 2001.
Five years later, Marshall and Kim got married again. This time they managed to live together for six months. The couple divorced, unable to save the family. They agreed to jointly raise their daughter Hayley, who the couple had in 1995. The rapper tried to show paternal responsibility towards the girl. Interestingly, the artist later also took custody of two more children – the daughter of Kim’s sister Alaina Scott and Whitney, a girl born to his ex-wife in another relationship. Eminem also took care of his half-brother Nathan Kane.
In the early 2000s, the rapper was credited with having affairs with actresses, singers, and models. An attractive musician with an athletic build (with a height of 173 cm, his weight did not exceed 68 kg) aroused the interest of many representatives of the fair sex. There were rumors about the scandalous singer's meetings with, but the stars denied any connection with Eminem. The artist’s romance with porn industry star Brittany Andrews lasted six months.
In 2002, the rapper dated the actress who played in the film “8 Mile”. The lovers tried to live together, but the relationship did not culminate in marriage.
Eminem and Brittany Murphy (still from the movie "8 Mile") Marshall, like all representatives of the hip-hop community, loves to decorate his body with various tattoos. During his creative career, Eminem had a lot of them. These are tattoos dedicated to the memory of a beloved uncle and deceased friend, daughter and ex-wife. There are also images that do not carry any semantic meaning.
Eminem's daughter, Haley Jade Scott, started an Instagram page on which she posts interesting photos.
The singer’s only biological child does not intend to follow in his father’s footsteps and has not yet decided on a profession. Hayley is tipped to be a model, but the girl is in no hurry. She graduated with honors and entered the University of Michigan.
In 2017, fans of the star welcomed the release of the official biography of their idol “Eminem. At the limit of what is possible." The book was presented by the writer Elizaveta Buta, who is the author of the biographies,.
Scandals
Eminem is a controversial personality and the hero of dozens of scandals. The cause of 90% of scandalous situations was not actions, but the words of songs.
In 1999, Debbie Nelson's mother spoke out against Marshall. She was upset that in his songs her son talked about her as an alcoholic, insane and drug addict. For the offensive lines of the track My Name Is, Debbie demanded $10 million in compensation for moral damages, but the court refused the woman.
In 2001, the world watched the altercation between rapper and singer Mariah Carey. Eminem claimed that he had a sexual relationship with the sweet-voiced diva and now the girl demands attention, but Mariah denied the connection. In the song Superman, the rapper dedicated several unpleasant lines to the singer. Eminem mentioned Carey again in the track Bagpipes From Baghdad.
In one of the songs, the musician spoke insultingly about, with whom he had previously maintained friendly relations. The friendship of the stars is over.
Marshall’s wife Kimberly Ann came under the aggressive barrage of her husband’s creativity: while married to her, the rapper repeatedly “killed” his wife. Having broken off relations with her, the musician beat Kim’s new beau with a pistol, for which he received a suspended 2-year prison sentence.
Eminem and Christina Aguilera had a fight In 2009, a scandal involving the rapper broke out at the MTV Movie Awards. Then, dressed as Bruno (a gay TV presenter), he soared with angelic wings over the stage, after which he “accidentally” landed on Eminem’s head, wrapping his legs around his head. The rap artist left the event bursting into obscene language. It turned out that the incident was planned, but no one warned the rapper about the half-naked Baron Cohen.
In the lyrics, Eminem spoke unflatteringly about Britney Spears and. Among the rapper's enemies were performers Whitey Ford, Ja Rule and members of the group Limp Bizkit.
Eminem now
Eminem is the founder of the independent non-profit hip-hop radio station Shade 45. The start date of its work was 2004. In addition to broadcasting Eminem’s own recordings, the uncensored radio station provides subscribers with the opportunity to listen to modern rap music, including foreign performers.
In 2017, the Russian rapper visited New York, where he gave a long interview on Shade 45. He reported about his visit from his personal page
Eminem (Eng. Eminem, real name Marshall Bruce Mathers III, English. Marshall Bruce Mathers III) is an American rapper, music producer and composer. One of the best-selling musical artists in the world, winner of fifteen Grammy awards and an Oscar for best song for the film “8 Mile,” where he played the leading role.Childhood
Marshall Bruce Mathers III was born on October 17, 1972 in the small town of St. Joseph, Missouri, USA. His parents, Marshall Bruce Mathers Jr. (born 1947) and Deborah Ray (Nelson) Mathers-Briggs (born 1955), were musicians who played in the Ramada restaurants. They married when Deborah was 15, and she soon gave birth to a son. 
The birth was difficult and long - it lasted 73 hours and almost ended in the death of the mother. Six months after this, Marshall’s parents separated, his father moved to California, started a new family with two children - Michael and Sarah - and completely forgot about his eldest son. Later, as a teenager, Marshall tried to contact his father and wrote him several letters, but he did not even print them and sent them back.
Trying to arrange her personal life, the mother, following her father, left her son when he was not yet a year old, and from 1973 to 1977 the boy was raised by his great-aunt Edna. Then Deborah returned, but during her travels she became addicted to alcohol, and later brought home new stepfathers several times, none of whom stayed for long.
Marshall and Deborah moved constantly from place to place, mostly staying with relatives, and rarely stayed in the same house for more than a year. A few years later, the mother gave birth to another son, Nathan. Finally, when Marshall was 12, the family settled in the suburbs of Detroit. Acquaintances of that time remembered Eminem as “a generally happy child, but withdrawn.”
Life in the new place was complicated by the fact that the teenager was not accepted by local children, mostly black children from working families. The boy was constantly teased, he was attacked and beaten almost every day. Subsequently, these sad moments were reflected in the lyrics of Eminem, in particular, in the song “Brain Damage”: “I was harassed every day by fat DeAngelo Bailey - he was an eighth grader and behaved arrogantly because his dad was a boxer.”
In 1983, it was this teenager who once hit Marshall in the head so hard that he lay in a coma for 10 days, and doctors had little hope of his recovery. “Glorified” in the song, Bailey later admitted in an interview: “We had a whole gang, and we took him in... You know, bullied him and everything. One day we hit him right on the head, on the back of the head. When we saw that he was not moving, we ran away. And then they lied and said that he slipped on the ice.”
First creativity
Marshall was introduced to rap by his uncle Ronnie Polkinghorne, who was only a few months older than him and became his first mentor in music. “My uncle was actually my best friend,” Eminem said gratefully. 
Ronnie recorded several of his tapes for his nephew. “And I thought: damn, this is what I can do!” the artist recalled. In addition to rap, the boy liked to write stories and draw homemade comics.
The teenager created his first rap duet at the age of 14 together with his friend Mike Ruby, and at the same time he came up with the pseudonym “M&M” (based on the first letters of his first and last name), which later transformed into “Eminem”.
Teenagers regularly participated in local unofficial freestyle competitions. Gradually gaining a place for themselves in a field that had previously been considered a 100% prerogative of blacks, they gained more and more fans.Youth
Marshall did poorly in school, especially in high school, not because he lacked ability, but because he was not interested in school at all. All he needed to do was rap. Having failed to complete the 9th grade, even after spending 3 years in a row at the Lincoln School, at the age of 17 he dropped out of school forever. 
In 1991, Uncle Ronnie shot himself because of unhappy love, and for Eminem it was such a shock that he was speechless for several days.
The young man's mother, Deborah, was constantly in conflict with him. Marshall had to work part-time from an early age to help her support her family, and yet she kicked him out of the house very often. She had a difficult character, which one of the social workers described as “increased suspicion, close to paranoia.” However, in 1987, she sheltered her son's runaway friend, Kimberly Scott, who later became Eminem's wife.
Later, the singer released information that Deborah, in addition to everything, suffered from Munchausen syndrome - a mental disorder in which a person invents or deliberately causes a serious illness in someone close to him in order to benefit from increased attention, sympathy and help from others. For this reason, his perfectly healthy 9-year-old brother Nathan spent a whole year in the hospital. In the end, in order to stop this bullying and provide his mother with qualified help, Marshall was forced to testify against her in court, and then he began to raise his brother on his own. A difficult childhood and the trials of his youth gave a strong impetus to Eminem’s creativity.
Music career
In 1995, Eminem made his debut as a professional musician with the New Jacks, and then, when they broke up, with the group Soul Intent, which also featured his friend Proof and DJ Butterfingers.Unreleased New Jacks album + photo of young Eminem
However, he was more interested in his individual career, and already in 1996 he recorded his first solo album, Infinite. This disc did not arouse much interest from listeners, because Detroit at that time was already oversaturated with hip-hop.
Eminem was very upset by the failure of his debut album, but later he himself admitted that his own style had not yet developed at that time, and that recording was just a test of the pen. In addition, the main lyrical theme of this work was the singer’s worries about how to raise his newborn daughter with very little money - to which he received the response: “Maybe you’d be better off going into rock and roll?” And Eminem realized that the lyrics of his compositions should become sharper, caustic and with a hint of anger.
The singer's new mood led to the creation of a new stage image, a kind of alter ego under the pseudonym Slim Shady. Slim literally glorified violence, drugs and even murder with sadistic pleasure, but under this outer shell he also touched on deeper themes of social injustice, poverty, love and family problems.
This was the mood of his new album “Slim Shady EP”, recorded in the spring of 1997. The disc was ready, but lay without promotion, and Eminem went to the “Rap Olympics” - an annual national competition in the rap battle format, which took place in Los Angeles. In this largest battle, the artist took second place, and the organizers drew attention to the talented young man.
Eminem – The Real Slim Shady
One of them, Jimmy Iovine, listened to the album “Slim Shady EP” and gave it to the famous rapper and rap producer Andre Romell Young, better known under the pseudonym Dr. Dre. He immediately took Eminem “under his wing,” and in 1999, the album “The Slim Shady LP” was successfully re-released and became a bestseller: it managed to become triple platinum before the end of the year and brought the artist his first Grammy award.
Dr. Dre later recalled: “In all my time in the music industry, I never came across anything worthwhile on demos or CDs. But when Jimmy played it, I immediately said: Find him, now." Colleagues tried to reason with the producer and warn him against working with a white-skinned, that is, “fake” rapper, to which he replied: “I don’t care if he’s even purple. If he raps well, I'll be with him."
Eminem was shocked by this turn of fate, because Dr. Dre had been one of his idols for many years: “I didn’t want to act like a fan or suck up to him too much... I was an ordinary white kid from Detroit, and before I met Dr. Dre, I generally I’ve never seen any of the stars.” And in one of the later interviews, the artist admitted that if it were not for the fateful participation of Dr. Dre and the sudden rise in popularity, he, in principle, was ready to despair and leave music in order to build a career in some other, less creative industry: his The daughter was only a year old, and the family desperately needed a stable income. 
At the end of 1999, Interscope Records provided the artist with his own record label, under which not only he himself subsequently released works, but also artists friendly to him, such as Obie Trice, 50 Cent, Stat Quo, Cashis, Bobby Creekwater, Yelawolf, bands D12 and "Slaughterhouse", etc.
The next album, The Marshall Mathers LP, was released in 2000 and sold 1,760,000 copies in its first week. The disc received the title of the fastest-selling hip-hop album, breaking previous records of the albums “Doggystyle” by Snoop Dogg and “Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears.
The lyrics of some singles from this disc have drawn serious criticism for being homophobic, as well as for insulting famous artists: in particular, the song “The Real Slim Shady” contains controversial information about the sex life of Christina Aguilera, and the song and especially the video released shortly “ “My Name Is” Eminem harshly parodied the rock singer Marilyn Manson, with whom he, however, is on good terms.
Eminem – My Name Is
The most controversial was the video for the song “Stan” - Marshall played on the theme of his sudden popularity, depicting a crazy fan who killed his pregnant girlfriend and committed suicide. The song was named the "third best rap song" by Q magazine and was ranked number 296 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. As a result, at the 43rd Grammy ceremony, Eminem and “Stan” won in three categories at once.
Eminem ft. Dido – Stan (full version)
In 2001, the artist took part in the large-scale Up in Smoke Tour along with Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, rappers Xzibit and Ice Cube. Following this, he focused on releasing his next album, The Eminem Show, which was released in May 2002 and again rocketed to number one on the charts. And although the disc also attracted the now-familiar criticism for its "angry mood", for insulting women and for its abundance of dirty language, it sold more than 30 million copies worldwide and became the best-selling album of 2002.
After this, Eminem released the disc “D12 World” together with the rap group “D12”, and the next solo disc “Encore” was released in November 2004. By all accounts, this work was less successful than the previous one: sales in the first week were only about a third of those of previous albums. One of the reasons for the lukewarm reception was perhaps the more comical mood of the album and softer, not at all “evil” lyrics without the usual cruelty.
Eminem's intention to rid himself of his evil alter ego Slim Shady is emphasized by the design of the album's cover, which depicts his farewell bow. True, there was still some ridicule of the stars: the video for the song “Just Lose It” shines with satire of Michael Jackson.
Eminem – Just Lose It
While working on the Encore album, Marshall frequently used drugs, and then became somewhat confused about his creative plans. After recording this work, he decided to take a creative break. The calm was broken only by the re-release of past compositions in the disc “Curtain Call: The Hits” and the release of the collection “Eminem Presents: The Re-Up”, in which the artist introduced new musicians Boby Creekwater and Cashis to the public.
In 2007, Eminem recorded the song “Peep Show” for the new album “Curtis” by the famous rapper 50 Cent, and then again disappeared from musical life for a whole year and a half.
The silence was broken in February 2009 with the release of the song "Crack a Bottle" featuring 50 Cent and Dr. Dre; Following this, several more singles were released, and in May, Eminem’s new full-length album, “Relapse,” was finally released. The key theme of this disc and its advertising campaign was Marshall's recovery from drug addiction. The artist himself described this work as a return to the “good old days.”
Dre and I locked ourselves in the studio again, just like before. Dre would end up producing most of the tracks on Relapse. We're having fun again... So be it.
The album was generally warmly received by the music audience and turned out to be quite successful, although criticism towards it was restrained: “Eminem had the opportunity to give his music a new quality. What he has now presented is still powerful, but very narrow in form.” Some noted that "... the album leaves an aftertaste of joyless fatigue - too noticeable for it to signify a return to form for the artist." 
However, there were no less positive reviews, and the album brought the artist another Grammy Award. At the end of the year, the second part was released - “Relapse: Refill”, which included both already known compositions and completely new ones, including the track “Forever”, performed together with rappers Drake, Kanye West and Lil Wayne.
Drake, Kanye West, Lil Wayne, Eminem – Forever
In June 2010, another “sequel” was released - the “Recovery” disc. It turned out to be noticeably more successful than the previous one, and critics finally recognized the return of the “old” Eminem with his “dark, dramatic beat”, “trademark acrobatic rhymes” and “a growing quality of anger”.
After this, the artist recorded the album “Hell: The Sequel” together with his friend from his youth, rapper Royce da 5"9", teaming up with him in the duet “Bad Meets Evil” - with this composition they had already worked together once in 1997, but then their joint creativity was not widely known. The new album instantly took off in the charts and elevated both performers to a new round of fame.
The next album, “The Marshall Mathers LP 2,” was released in August 2013 and became one of the most anticipated discs in several years. It is called the most “atmospheric” of Eminem’s albums - it is permeated with the spirit of nostalgia for youth. Many famous artists were invited to record it, not only rappers, but also singers of other genres, including r’n’b singer Rihanna. The disc was again successful, and even the most demanding critics did not find any flaws in it.
In 2014, the recording company Shady Records, founded by the artist, released the double collection “Shady XV”. The first disc contains fresh tracks by Eminem himself, as well as groups with his participation and his friends: “Slaughterhouse”, “Yelawolf”, “D12”, “Bad Meets Evil”, etc. The second disk collected all the best hits over its 15-year history label: artists such as Obie Trice, 50 Cent, Bobby Creekwater, Ca$his and Stat Quo are featured here. In 2015 – 2017, Eminem released several hits: “Campaign Speech”, “Kill For You”, etc.
In 2017, Eminem worked on a new album, Revival, his first solo disc since The Marshall Mathers LP 2, released in 2013. Earlier in 2017, he released a video in which he rapped with harsh criticism of US President Donald Trump.
Eminem produces his own fashion line, which can be purchased through his official website. One of his latest collections, “Camp Shady,” also contains equipment for hiking and sports tourism.
Film career and other works
Eminem made his film debut, playing a cameo role in the comedy “The Wash” (2001), in which all the main roles were played by his colleagues, including Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. The film was not widely known - critics considered it “amateurish and not funny.” 
His most significant film work was the lead role in the Curtis Henson drama 8 Mile (2002) starring Kim Basinger and Brittany Murphy. This film is about a young Detroit rapper nicknamed Rabbit, and for Eminem it is largely autobiographical.
Eminem – Lose Yourself (cut from “Eight Mile”)
The audience liked the film, and the artist’s performance was especially praised: “The genius of the Rabbit’s image is that he recognizes his own weaknesses,” and Eminem’s work is “pure magic.” Eminem also wrote and performed 5 songs for this film, including the title track "Lose Yourself", for which he was awarded an Oscar. In addition, for his work on the film, he received two MTV Movie Awards – in the categories “Male Breakthrough of the Year” and “Best Actor”.
After that, the artist starred as a cameo in the film “Pranksters” (2009) with Adam Sandler and in the seventh season of the series “Entourage,” and also voiced characters in the video game “50 Cent: Bulletproof” and the animated series “The Slim Shady Show.”
"Pranksters." Excerpt with Eminem
In 2008, the artist published his autobiography “The Way I Am” (“I am who I am”). He also founded his own charity, The Marshall Mathers Foundation, to help disadvantaged children.
Eminem's personal life
Marshall and his high school sweetheart Kimberly Ann Scott began dating in 1989 and have since broken up and gotten back together several times. On December 25, 1995, their daughter, Haley Jade Scott, was born. 
At first, while Eminem’s musical career was not taking shape, the young family lived in extremely cramped financial conditions, and the artist had to work as a dishwasher in a restaurant in order to somehow make ends meet.
The couple officially got married in 1999, but divorced in 2001. In an interview at that time, Eminem swore: “I would rather give birth to a child through my penis than agree to marry again.”
However, in January 2006, she and Kim re-entered into a legal marriage, but in April of the same year they separated again and finally divorced in December. The former spouses agreed to jointly raise their common daughter Haley, and in addition, Marshall took sole custody of two other children whom he adopted: Alaina Scott (Kim’s niece, her sister’s daughter) and Whitney Scott (Kim’s daughter from another man).
During the interim breakup with Kim, Eminem had short relationships with several girls, among whom the tabloids name former Spice Girls member Jerry Halliwell, 8 Mile co-star Brittany Murphy, porn star Brittany Andrews, singer Mariah Carey, and others.
After the final divorce, he repeatedly stated that he no longer wanted to enter into a love relationship with anyone, because he could not completely trust anyone. Marshall fears that women may have ulterior motives for relationships, will not be completely honest with him and will not be able to remain faithful. In 2008, he briefly dated Tracy McNew, an employee of Shady Records, but nothing is known about his subsequent relationship.
Eminem's half-brother Nathan Kane, over whom he had custody, followed in his footsteps and also became a famous rapper. The artist still has a difficult relationship with his mother: she repeatedly sued him, and then published a book about him, “My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem,” in which, in particular, she said that he has suffered from bipolar mental disorder all his life .
Eminem now
The summer of 2018 ended with the release of Eminem’s tenth anniversary studio album “Kamikaze”, which included 13 new tracks by the rapper. One of them, the most recent one, was included in the soundtrack of the film “Venom” with Tom Hardy. The performer generously criticized everyone: mumble rap (Lil Pump and the like), music critics who disliked his last album, Donald Trump, the group Die Antwoord (their vocalist Yolandi Visser laughed at his name in one of the tracks), as well as his former group D12.In parallel with working on his material, he helped singer Nicki Minaj with the recording of her album “Queen”. Around the same time, Eminem broke his record for the fastest rapping, reading 123 syllables in 12 seconds. He rapped faster on Nicki's "Majesty" than on his own track "Rap God."
