Eminem's Biography

Marshall Bruce Mathers III aka Eminem was born in St Joseph, Missouri on October 17, 1972.

Living with his mother on the East side of Detroit, Eminem or M&M as he then was, began rapping in his early teens.

In 1995 Eminem released a single with fellow Detroit MC 'Proof'. In the same year his girlfriend Kim Scott gave birth to Hailie Jade. A year later Eminem released 'Infinite' on the label WEB Entertainment created by the Bass brothers.

Those were tough years with Eminem finding difficulty in making ends meet. But in 1997 he created the 'Slim Shady EP' in two weeks and this was to be the forerunner to 'The Slim Shady LP' released in 1999, after Eminem had been picked up by the legend Dr Dre. Bouncing off the success of the hit single 'My Name Is', the album shot to No. 2 on the Billboard chart.

Further success followed with The Marshall Mathers LP (2000) and The Eminem Show (2002).

Eminem became the world's number one selling male artist. The Marshall Mathers LP alone sold 19 million copies worldwide. Eminem's album, Encore, sold 11m copies worldwide.

Eminem's music combines a curious mix of catchy tunes with harsh lyrics. Often criticised by the establishment and also by liberals, many of his critics started jumping on his bandwagon or seeing the light (depending which way look at it) after his starring role in the film '8 Mile'.

In August 2005, after Eminem's European Anger Management tour was cancelled, his management released a statement:

"Marshall Mathers, aka Eminem, is in the hospital under doctors' care. He's being treated for dependency on sleep medication."

As well as performing, Eminem is also a successful producer. D12, Obie Trice and Stat Quo are amongst those that Eminem has produced.

In the course of Eminem's rise to mega-stardom he had run-ins with his mother, Debbie Mathers-Briggs, and with his ex-wife Kim Mathers. However, in December 2005 Eminem told an American radio station that he and Kim were reconciled and might remarry - which they did in January 2006.

There was another twist though. Eminem filed for divorce just three months after the remarriage. Eminem and Kim Mathers then agreed to divide property under terms of a private settlement and to share custody of Hailie Jade Scott. Circuit Judge Antonio P. Viviano said: "All in all, they are a very fine couple to deal with."

In January 2007, Shake That by Eminem was voted favourite hip-hop song at the 33rd annual People's Choice Awards.

In January 2008, the BBC reported that Eminem was recovering after being treated in hospital for pneumonia.

In February 2009, Eminem's comeback single Crack A Bottle, featuring Dr Dre and 50 Cent, entered the UK singles chart at number four. Crack A Bottle sold more than 418,000 online copies, the most in a first week of release and became number one in the US Billboard singles chart.

Released shortly after Crack A Bottle, Relapse was Eminem's first album since Encore, which was released in 2004.

Relapse included a track Bagpipes From Baghdad, which caused Mariah Carey's husband Nick Cannon to heavily criticise Eminem.

Relapse entered the UK chart at number one.

At the 2010 Grammy Awards, Eminem won best rap album for Relapse and best rap performance by a duo or group for Crack A Bottle.

In April 2010 he announced that he would release his second album in under 13 months in the summer of 2010.

The new album Recovery, like Encore, The Eminem Show, The Marshall Mathers LP, Curtain Call - The Hits, and Relapse, went to number 1 in the UK.

Recovery ended up the top-selling album of 2010 in the US.

In January 2011, Eminem won the best male and best hip-hop artist gongs at the People's Choice Awards and Love The Way You Lie, his duet with Rihanna, won the best song and video award.

In 2024, he released his 12th album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce).