Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972),better known by his stage name Eminem (stylized as EMINƎM) and by his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem is a member of his group D12, and also one half of the hip hop duo Bad Meets Evil, with Royce da 5'9". Eminem is one of the best-selling artists in the world and is the best selling artist of the 2000s.He has been listed and ranked as one of the greatest artists of all time by many magazines, including Rolling Stone magazine which ranked him 82nd on its list of The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.The same magazine declared him The King of Hip Hop.Including his work with D12 and Bad Meets Evil, Eminem has achieved ten number-one albums on the Billboard 200. He has sold more than 42 million tracks and 49.1 million albums in the United States,and 100 million albums worldwide.

 

Eminem gained popularity in 1999 with his major-label debut album The Slim Shady LP. His debut album, along with his second, The Marshall Mathers LP, and third, The Eminem Show, all won Grammy Awards, making Eminem the first artist to win Best Rap Album for three consecutive LPs. The Marshall Mathers LP is considered one of Eminem's best and most successful albums. Eminem then went on hiatus after touring in 2005. He released his first album since 2004's Encore, titled Relapse, on May 15, 2009. In 2010, Eminem released his seventh studio album Recovery. Recovery was an international success and was named the best selling album of 2010 worldwide, joining The Eminem Show, which was the best seller of 2002. Eminem won Grammy Awards for both Relapse and Recovery, giving him a total of 13 Grammys in his career.

 

Eminem has opened other ventures, including his own record label Shady Records with his manager Paul Rosenberg. He also has his own radio channel, Shade 45 on Sirius XM Radio. Eminem began an acting career in 2002, when he starred in the hip hop drama film 8 Mile. He won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, becoming the first rap artist ever to win the award.He is also set to star in the 2013 films Shady Talez and Have Gun, Will Travel. He has made cameo appearances in The Wash (2001), Funny People (2009) and the television series Entourage.

 

Other ventures

Shady Records and D12

As Eminem succeeded in multi-platinum record sales, Interscope granted him his own record label. He and his manager Paul Rosenberg created Shady Records in late 1999. He followed this by signing his own Detroit collective D12 and rapper Obie Trice to the label. In 2002, Eminem signed 50 Cent through a joint venture between Shady and Dr. Dre's Aftermath label. In 2003, Eminem and Dr. Dre signed Atlanta rapper Stat Quo to the Shady/Aftermath roster. DJ Green Lantern, the former DJ for Eminem, was signed to Shady Records until a dispute related to the 50 Cent and Jadakiss feud forced him to depart from the label; he is no longer associated with Eminem. The Alchemist is now officially Eminem's tour DJ. In 2005, Eminem signed another Atlanta rapper, Bobby Creekwater, to his label along with West Coast rapper Cashis.

 

On December 5, 2006, Shady Records released compilation album, Eminem Presents: The Re-Up. It started out as a mixtape but Eminem found that the material was better than expected and released it as a full album. It was meant to help launch the new artists under the roster, like Stat Quo, Cashis and Bobby Creekwater.Around the time of recording Infinite, Eminem and rappers Proof and Kon Artis gathered the group of rappers now collectively in the group D12, short for "Detroit Twelve" or "Dirty Dozen", performing in the manner of the multi-man group Wu-Tang Clan.In 2001, Eminem brought his rap group, D12, to the popular music scene, and the group's debut album Devil's Night came out that year.The first single released off of the album was "Shit on You", followed by "Purple Pills", an ode to recreational drug use. For radio and television, the censored version was heavily rewritten to remove many of the song's references to drugs and sex and was renamed "Purple Hills". While that single was a hit, the album's second single, "Fight Music", was not as successful.

 

After their debut, D12 took a three-year break from the studio, later regrouping to release their second album, D12 World, in 2004, which featured the popular hit single release "My Band".In April 2006, D12 member (and Eminem's childhood friend) Deshaun "Proof" Holton was killed in a club brawl on 8 Mile Road in Detroit, Michigan, with US military veteran Keith Bender, Jr., who also died in the fray. The eruption is suspected to have been due to an argument over a game of pool. Proof was then allegedly shot by the bouncer Mario Etheridge, Bender's cousin. He was taken by private vehicle to St. John Health's Conner Creek Campus, an outpatient emergency treatment site, but pronounced dead on arrival. Eminem and former Detroit Shady Records artist Obie Trice spoke at the funeral.D12 member Bizarre said that Eminem is not featured on his new album Blue Cheese & Coney Island because "he's busy doing his thing".D12 released a mixtape in 2011 titled Return of the Dozen Volume 2 only featuring Eminem on one song, "Fame" unlike the group's previous mixtape Return of the Dozen where Eminem is not on any tracks.

 

Acting career

Although he had a small part in the 2001 film, The Wash, Eminem made his official Hollywood acting debut with the semi-autobiographical 8 Mile, released in November 2002. He has said the movie is not an account of his life, but a representation of growing up in Detroit. He recorded several new songs for the soundtrack, including "Lose Yourself," which won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2003. "Lose Yourself" would go on to become the longest running No. 1 hip hop single.However, the song was not performed at the ceremony, due to Eminem's absence at the ceremony. His collaborator, Luis Resto, who co-wrote the song, accepted the award.

 

Eminem has participated in various voice acting roles. Some of these include the video game 50 Cent: Bulletproof, where he voices an aging corrupt police officer who speaks in Ebonics and guest spots on the Comedy Central television show Crank Yankers, and a web cartoon called The Slim Shady Show, which has since been pulled off-line and is instead sold on DVD.He will be involved in either the soundtrack or scoring.He was also in the running for the part of David Rice in 2008's film Jumper after Tom Sturridge was dropped just two weeks before filming. Concerns over not having a more prominent actor prompted the director, Doug Liman, to consider other actors for the role. He eventually selected Hayden Christensen over Eminem.He also had a cameo appearance in the 2009 movie Funny People, in which he is involved in an argument with Ray Romano.

 

It was reported on November 8, 2009, that Eminem will star in the upcoming 3D horror anthology, Shady Talez, to be produced by John Davis.A four-issue comic book series based on the film was expected to be published sometime in 2010.

 

Eminem appeared alongside Christina Aguilera on the Entourage Season 7 finale titled 'Lose Yourself' as himself.

 

Eminem is set to play a boxer in the upcoming film Southpaw. Peter Schiff will produce the film,and Antoine Fuqua is reportedly the leading candidate to direct.In January 2011, a report surfaced that Eminem will star in the upcoming thriller, Random Acts of Violence.

 

Memoirs

On October 21, 2008, Eminem released a tell-all autobiography entitled The Way I Am, which details his struggles with poverty, drugs, fame, heartbreak and depression, along with stories about his rise to fame and commentary on past controversies. This book also contains some of the original lyric sheets from songs such as "Stan" and "The Real Slim Shady."

 

Eminem's mother, Debbie Nelson, also released an autobiography entitled My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem, which explains Nelson's life growing up, meeting Marshall Bruce Mathers, Jr. (Eminem's father) and Eminem's rise to, and struggle with, fame.

 

Advertising

Eminem was featured in two commercials that aired during Super Bowl XLV. The first, for Lipton's Brisk Iced Tea, was a one-minute spot that featured him as a claymation figure.The other was a two-minute ad, at that time the longest in Super Bowl history, for the Chrysler 200. It featured Eminem driving through Detroit and ended with him taking the stage at the Fox Theatre with "Lose Yourself" playing as the soundtrack.

 

Charity

Eminem has also founded his own charity named The Marshall Mathers Foundation, assisting disadvantaged youth. The foundation frequently works in conjunction with a charity founded by Norman Yatooma, a high profile Detroit attorney.

 

Artistry

Influences and rapping technique

Eminem has named several MCs who influenced his rapping style. First and foremost is his mentor, Dr. Dre, whose thick, muscular, terror- and paranoia-evoking loops have seen reincarnations in the work of Eminem.Other influences have included Esham,Kool G Rap,Masta Ace,Big Daddy Kane,Newcleus,Ice-T,Mantronix,Melle Mel (specifically the track "The Message"), LL Cool J, Beastie Boys,Run-DMC,Rakim, and Boogie Down Productions.

 

In the book How to Rap, Guerilla Black notes that Eminem studied other MCs to create his rapping technique: "Eminem listened to everything and that's what made him one of the greats".In the same book, Eminem is praised for various aspects of his rapping technique by numerous other MCs; these techniques include his varied and humorous subject matter,connecting with his audience,carrying a concept over a series of albums,complex rhyme schemes,his ability to bend words so that they rhyme, his use of multisyllabic rhymes, fitting many rhymes in each bar,complex rhythms, clear enunciation,use of melody,and syncopation.He is also known to write the majority of his lyrics down on paper, as documented in his book The Way I Am, as well as taking a few days or a week to craft lyrics,being a "workaholic", and "stacking" vocals.

 

Alter egos

Eminem uses alter egos in his songs to use different styles of rapping and subject matters. His most famous and popular alter ego, "Slim Shady", originated from The Slim Shady EP. While under this personality, Eminem makes violent and dark songs with a comical twist. Though his Slim Shady persona has remained, Eminem did not include it in Recovery as much because he did not feel it fit the theme.

 

Another character Eminem has portrayed is Ken Kaniff. Ken was originally played by fellow Detroit rapper Aristotle in the Slim Shady LP, who appeared in a prank call skit towards Eminem. After the Slim Shady LP, an argument led to Eminem taking the character of Ken Kaniff and playing him in several skits starting in the Marshall Mathers LP and onwards (except for Encore and Recovery). In his Ken Kaniff personality, Ken is a homosexual who pokes fun at Eminem's songs. Aristotle, the original creator of Ken Kaniff, became angry over Eminem taking his character and created a mixtape in which he raps in his Ken persona dissing Eminem.

 

Featurings and productions

Although he typically collaborates with various rappers under Aftermath Entertainment and Shady Records, such as Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, D12, and Obie Trice, Eminem has collaborated with many other artists, including Redman, Kid Rock, DMX, Missy Elliott, Jay-Z, Drake, Xzibit, Method Man, Jadakiss, Fat Joe, Sticky Fingaz, T.I. and others. Eminem rapped a verse in a live performance of Busta Rhymes' "Touch It" remix at the 2006 BET Music Awards on June 27, 2006. Eminem was featured on Akon's single "Smack That" which appeared on his album Konvicted. He was featured on Lil Wayne's hit song Drop the World.

 

Eminem is also an active rap producer. Besides being the executive producer of D12's first two albums, Devil's Night and D12 World, he has executive produced Obie Trice's Cheers and Second Round's on Me as well as 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin' and The Massacre.In addition, Eminem has produced songs by other famous rappers, such as Jadakiss' "Welcome To D-Block", Jay-Z's "Renegade" and "Moment of Clarity" Lloyd Banks' "On Fire", "Warrior Part 2", and "Hands Up", Tony Yayo's "Drama Setter", Trick-Trick's "Welcome 2 Detroit", and Xzibit's "My Name" and "Don't Approach Me".Most of The Eminem Show was produced by Eminem himself, with co-production from longtime collaborator Jeff Bass.He split the production with Dr. Dre on Encore. In 2004, Eminem was the Executive Producer of 2Pac's posthumous album Loyal to the Game with 2Pac's mother Afeni Shakur. He produced the UK No. 1 single "Ghetto Gospel" which featured Elton John.He has produced "The Cross" off Nas's album God's Son. On August 15, 2006, Obie Trice released Second Round's on Me. Eminem produced 8 tracks on the album. He was featured in the song "There They Go".Eminem produced some tracks on the new Trick-Trick album, The Villain. He is also featured in "Who Want It".

 

With regard to the productions on his own records, Eminem is seen as having an unusual style in that rather than write to beats he typically starts with an idea of how he wants his song to be structured based on the lyrics and then creates music according to that.A notable exception to this was the song "Stan", which came from an idea and scratch track produced by Mark the 45 King.

 

Comparisons to other artists

As Asher Roth gained prominence being a white performer in a predominantly black musical genre, Roth has earned many comparisons to Eminem, so much so that he devoted a track on his album to the famed rapper, entitled "As I Em."

 

Eminem and Christian hip hop artist KJ-52 were often compared to each other, as many called KJ-52 the "Christian counterpart" of Eminem.One of the most notable mainstream reactions to Gospel rap was to KJ-52 and his single "Dear Slim", which was written to Eminem in an attempt reach him with the message of Christianity, though Eminem claims to be a Christian.The song became famous and controversial among Eminem fans when it was featured on the hit show Total Request Live. KJ-52 began to receive hate mail (including death threats) from Eminem's fans, though KJ-52 claimed that the song was not intended to be disrespectful.This also led to the single being disparaged by VH1 as No. 26 on their "Top 40 Worst Moments in Hip Hop".

 

In 2011, rapper Mac Miller was praised by Donald Trump, who called Miller "the next Eminem" in reaction to Miller's music video "Donald Trump" reaching 20 million views on YouTube. Criticism of this remark led MTV News to talk to Miller about the comment, with Miller responding "...all he meant was I’m a white rapper and I’m blowing up."

 

Personal life

Family

Eminem has been the subject of much scrutiny, both as a rapper and in his personal life.He was married twice to Kimberly Anne Scott, whom he met in high school. Kimberly had run away from her home as a teenager, along with her sister Dawn. They moved in with Marshall and his mother when he was 15. Kim and Marshall began their on-and-off relationship in 1989, and were married in 1999. In 2000, they filed for divorce shortly after Kim's second drunk driving conviction.The couple first divorced in 2001 but remarried in January 2006. Their second divorce was finalized in December of the same year, with the couple agreeing to share custody of their daughter, Hailie Jade Mathers (born December 25, 1995).Hailie Mathers has often been referenced or featured on various songs by Mathers including "'97 Bonnie & Clyde", "Hailie's Song", "My Dad's Gone Crazy", "Mockingbird", "When I'm Gone", "Beautiful", "Airplanes Pt. II", "Going Through Changes", and "You're Never Over".

 

In early 2010, Mathers responded publicly to tabloid reports of his pending reunion with Kim with a firm denial.Eminem has adopted two other daughters: Alaina "Lainie" Mathers, the child of Kimberley Scott's sister,who has been referenced by name in some songs including "Mockingbird", "Airplanes Part II" and "Going Through Changes"; and Whitney, Scott's child from a previous relationship. Whitney is mentioned in the song "Deja Vu" as well as "Going Through Changes". Mathers is also the legal guardian of his younger half-brother, Nathan who has been mentioned in "Cleanin' Out My Closet" and "My Mom".

 

Regarding his religious views, Eminem said in 2009 that "I definitely pray a lot more than I used to. I don’t feel like I’m crazy wacky religious. But I do believe in God, and I do pray.

 

Legal troubles

In 1999, Eminem's mother sued him for around US$10 million over alleged slander about her in his lyrics regarding The Slim Shady LP; she won about US$1,600 in damages in 2001.

 

Eminem was arrested on June 3, 2000 during an altercation at a car audio store in Royal Oak, Michigan, with Douglas Dail, where he pulled out an unloaded gun and kept it pointed at the ground.The following day, in Warren, Michigan, he allegedly saw his then wife, Kim, kiss bouncer John Guerrera in the parking lot of the Hot Rock Café, and he assaulted him and was then arrested.Eminem recreated the Guerrera assault in a skit on his junior album The Eminem Show on a track called "The Kiss (Skit)." Mathers was charged with possession of a concealed weapon and assault. Mathers plead guilty to the charges and was given two years probation for both episodes.

 

On July 7, 2000, Eminem's then-wife, Kimberly Scott attempted suicide by slashing her wrists.Scott sued Eminem for defamation after he depicted her violent death in his song "Kim".

 

On October 26, 2000, Eminem was to perform at a concert in Toronto's Skydome.However, Ontario Attorney General Jim Flaherty argued that Canada should stop Eminem at the border. "I personally don't want anyone coming to Canada who will come here and advocate violence against women," he said.Flaherty claims to have been "disgusted" when reading transcriptions of Eminem's song "Kill You", which includes lines like "Slut, you think I won't choke no whore/till the vocal cords don't work in her throat no more?"The opinion of the general public to the requests made by the province were negative. Others said the issue was one of free speech. Liberal MPP Michael Bryant suggested that the government lay hate crime charges against Eminem for the advocacy of violence against women found in his lyrics.In a Globe and Mail editorial, author Robert Everett-Green wrote, "Being offensive is Eminem's job description."Eminem's Toronto concert went on as planned that night.

 

D'Angelo Bailey, a sanitation worker, sued Eminem in 2001 and accused him of invading his privacy by publicizing (in the song “Brain Damage”) unreasonable information that put him in a false light. Bailey admitted that he picked on Mathers but said he merely "bumped" him at school and threw a "little shove." On October 20, 2003, the charges were dismissed in court.

 

On June 28, 2001, Eminem was sentenced to one year probation on weapons charges that stemmed from an argument with an employee of Psychopathic Records, assessing him a fine around $2,000 as well as several hours of community service.

 

On March 31, 2002, French jazz pianist Jacques Loussier filed a $10 million lawsuit against Eminem and Dr. Dre, claiming the beat for "Kill You" was stolen from his song.Loussier demanded that all sales of the album be halted and any remaining copies destroyed. A trial date was set to begin in June 2004. The case was later settled.

 

On December 8, 2003, the United States Secret Service admitted it was "looking into" allegations that Eminem had threatened the President of the United States, George W. Bush,after the song "We as Americans", as an unreleased bootleg, circulated with the lyrics "Fuck money, I don't rap for dead presidents. I'd rather see the president dead, it's never been said but I set precedents." The incident was later referenced in the video for his song "Mosh" as one of several news clips on a wall, along with other newspaper articles about other unfortunate incidents in Bush's career. The song eventually appeared on the album's bonus disc, where the lyrics were extensively censored.

 

In 2005, Eminem's aunt and uncle, Jack and Betty Schmitt, sued him, alleging that he has promised them a $350,000 house and the money to keep it up, and instead has kept it in his name and tried to evict them.

 

In 2007, his music publishing company, Eight Mile Style LLC, together with Martin Affiliated LLC, filed suit against Apple Inc. and Aftermath Entertainment claiming Aftermath did not have the appropriate authority to negotiate a deal with Apple for digital downloads of 93 Eminem songs on Apple's iTunes service.The case against Apple was settled shortly after trial began in late September 2009.

 

In July 2010 the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled in F.B.T. Productions, LLC v. Aftermath Records that F.B.T. Productions and Eminem were owed a royalty of 50% of the net revenue Aftermath obtained by licensing Eminem's recordings to companies like Apple Inc., Sprint, Nextel, Cingular, and T-Mobile. In March 2011 the Supreme Court of the United States upheld this ruling.

 

Legacy

Eminem is the best-selling artist of the 2000s (decade) on the US Nielsen SoundScan,and has sold more than 90 million albums worldwide to date, making him one of the best-selling music artists in the world.He has totaled over 1 billion views on his music videos on his official Vevo page on YouTube.Eminem was ranked 83rd on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.He was also named the Best Rapper Alive by Vibe magazine in 2008.In December 2009, Eminem was named the Artist of the Decade by Billboard magazine.In 2010, MTV Portugal ranked Eminem as the seventh biggest icon in pop music history.During 2010, Eminem's music generated 94 million streams, more than any other music artist.Also according to Billboard, Eminem has two of his albums among the top five highest selling albums of the 2000s (decade). In the UK, Eminem has sold over 12.5 million records. Eminem has also sold more than 33 million track downloads and 40.9 million albums in the United States alone.Including his work as a part of groups, Eminem has achieved ten No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200, seven solo (five studio albums, two compilations), two with D12 and one with Bad Meets Evil. Eminem has had 13 number one singles worldwide. His albums The Eminem Show, The Marshall Mathers LP, and Encore ranked as the 3rd, 7th, and 40th best-selling albums of the 2000–2009 decade respectively by Billboard magazine.In August 2011 Eminem was named "The King of Hip-Hop" by Rolling Stone.The magazine looked at solo rappers who released music between 2009 and the first half of 2011 by analizing their album sales, rankings on the R&B/hip-hop and rap charts, YouTube views, social media, concert grosses, industry awards and critics' ratings,and the data accumulated named Eminem the king of the time period.

 

Eminem's second major label studio album, The Marshall Mathers LP, became the fastest-selling solo album in United States history.The album has been ranked as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time by such magazines as Rolling Stone, Time, and XXL.Rolling Stone placed the album at number seven on its list of the best albums of the 2000s (decade).The album's third single, "Stan", is one of Eminem's most critically acclaimed songs, having been ranked by About.com as Eminem's best song and referred to by Pitchfork Media as "a cultural milestone".In 2005, Eminem was ranked 79th on the VH1 100 Greatest Artists of All-Time.

 

Discography

• Infinite (1996)

• The Slim Shady LP (1999)

• The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)

• The Eminem Show (2002)

• Encore (2004)

• Relapse (2009)

• Recovery (2010)