Music class final project by Jennifer Brunello

Eminem

BIRTH DATE: October 17, 1972

PLACE OF BIRTH: St. Joseph, Missouri

FULL NAME: Marshall Bruce Mathers III

NICKNAME: SlimShady

ZODIAC SIGN: Libra

BY: Jennifer Brunello

Born on October 17, 1972, in St. Joseph, Missouri, rap musician Eminem had a turbulent childhood.

About Eminem…His Younger Years

Marshall Mathers III(Eminem) was born in St. Joseph, Missouri on October 17, 1972. His father, Marshal Mathers, Jr. abandoned the family when he was very young, and refused any of Eminem’s attempts to contact him. His mother, Deborah Mathers, couldn’t hold a job and bounced back & forth between Missouri and Detroit, Michigan, living in the housing projects. Because of this,Eminem had to frequently change schools.

High school Years

Eminem attended Lincoln High School in Warren, Michigan, where he failed the ninth grade three times and eventually dropped out at the age of 17. Despite being a poor student, Eminem always had a love for language, reading comic books and even studying the dictionary.

What he has to Say…

He released The Slim Shady LP in early 1999, and the album went multi-platinum, garnering Eminem two Grammy Awards and four MTV Video Music Awards. In 2000, the rapper released The Marshall Mathers LP, which was noted as the fastest-selling album in rap history. More recently, in 2010, Eminem released the Grammy-winning album Recovery, which was almost like an autobiography, coming to terms with his struggles with addiction and experience with rehabilitation. Eminem plans to release his eighth album, MMLP2, in 2013.

• As a teenage high school dropout, Eminem found a way to express his passion for language, as well as to release his youthful anger, through the emerging musical genre of hip-hop. He identified with the rage of 1980s and early-1990s rap music, and he especially admired N.W.A., the popular and very controversial rap crew from Los Angeles.

Quotes…

Eminem’s Rap Battles…

Even though back then rap music was almost strictly produced by black people, Eminem, with his pale white skin and blue eyes, still entered into the Detroit rap scene and often competed in rap "battles"—competitions in which two rappers take turns insulting the other through improvised rap lyrics. Eminem ended up being very skilled at this and, despite his race, soon became one of the most respected figures in Detroit's underground rap scene.

EMINEM

At these rap “battles” he took the stage name M.M.(Marshal Mathers) and later started spelling it Eminem. During this same time, he started dating Kim Ann Scott, and in 1995 they had a daughter named Hailie Jade Scott. Having a daughter inspired Eminem to make a living out of his musical talents, so in 1996, he released his first independent rap album, Infinite. The record was unsuccessful though.

Cinderella Man

The Road to Success…

A year later, Eminem went to Los Angeles and became a runner-up in the 1997 Rap Olympics MC Battle. Dr. Dre, the famous rapper and former producer of N.W.A., heard Eminem’s The Slim Shady EP in the basement of executive Jimmy Lovine’s house. Dre was so impressed that he signed Eminem to his InterscopeRecords label.

Fame…

And More Success…

1999, Eminem released The Slim Shady LP. The heavily hyped record became an instant success and went on to sell over three million copies. Eminem's first single, "My Name Is," mixed a childish humor and energy with rampant profanity and flashes of violence—a potent and fascinating combination that felt different from anything else in rap. Marshall and Kim Mathersmarried later that same year.

Eminem & Elton John…

“I don't care if you're black, white, straight, bisexual, gay, lesbian, short, tall, fat, skinny, rich or poor. If you're nice to me, I'll be nice to you. Simple as that.” ― Eminem.

“I say what I want to say and do what I want to do. There's no in between. People will either love you for it or hate you for it.”

-Eminem

In May of 2000, Eminem released his second album, The Marshall Mathers LP. It sold over 19 million copies worldwide and even won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. It also was nominated for Album of the Year and is often considered one of the best rap albums of all time.

The Price of Success…

Along with his success, Eminem’s Marshall Mathers album faced much criticism for excessive profanity, glorification of drugs and violence, and even homophobia and misogyny.

“Yellow Brick Road” by Eminem

More Lyrics…

Relapse, Rehab and Recovery…For the next few years, Eminem dropped out of the scene because he was dealing with many personal issues. He divorced, remarried, and again divorced Kim, which ended up in a very nasty and public custody battle. He ended up addicted to painkillers and almost killed himself in 2007. By 2008, he got clean and began to record music again. His album “Recovery” was released in 2010. This inspirational and revealing album won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album.

The Good Old Days…

In 2001, Eminem reunited with some of his old friends from Detroit’s underground rap scene. They formed the group D12, and made an album called Devil’s Night.

Eminem

A year after that, Eminem released a new solo album, The Eminem Show. His next album, Encore was in 2004.

The old Neighborhood…

-Eminem

Crazy?...

His Lyrics…

Conclusion…In hip-hop’s short history, Eminem is one of the most acclaimed rappers in this genre, and as much as any other single artist, he’s probably responsible for much of rap’s transformation into mainstream music.

These days, Eminem says, “I started learning how not to be so angry about things, learning how to count my blessings instead. By doing that, I’ve become a happier person, instead of all the self-loathing I was doing for a while.”