Eminem was born 'Marshall Bruce Mathers III' on the 17th October 1973 in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. Later he would be moved across various states before ending up in Detroit at the age of 12. Eminem took up rapping whilst in high school and was heavily influenced by his uncle Ronnie who later commited suicide. Eminem decided to take raping serious and dropped out of high school in the ninth grade. Now focusing on rapping Eminem started showing up at rap freestyling events at Detroit's St. Andrew's Hall and went on to release his first LP "Infinite" in 1996. "Infinite" got a poor crticism by many saying he was trying to be a rapper which he wasn't but as Eminem quoted about his LP, "Infinite was me trying to figure out how I wanted my rap style to be, how I wanted to sound on the mic and present myself. It was a growing stage. I felt like Infinite was like a demo that just got pressed up." In 1997 Eminem competed in the LA Rap Olympics and took second place in free style rap which soon gave him more recognition. Later that year he featured in the single "5 Star Generals" by Shabaam Sahdeeq which helped him gain a much larger underground audience.

Things started to pick up for Eminem in 1998 when he was heard by Dr. Dre on a LS radio station and was soon signed up to the Aftermath Label. Eminem said "It was an honor to hear the words out of Dre's mouth that he liked my shit. Growing up, I was one of the biggest fans of N.W.A, from putting on the sunglasses and looking in the mirror and lip sinking, to wanting to be Dr. Dre, to be Ice Cube. This is the biggest hip-hop producer ever." He now knew that the game had stepped up a level and shortly after signing with Dre he released "The Slim Shady EP" which would be the real starting point of his world wide recognition today. After "The Slim Shady EP" went down well, in February 1999 he released "The Slim Shady LP" which debuts at No.2 on the Billboard charts, selling 283,000 copies. Within 2 month's "The Slim Shady LP" went 2x Platinum and topped the Billboard R&B Album chart for a week. At the end of the year the LP went 3x Platinum and Eminem won his first awards - MTV Music Award for Best New Artist and the MTV European Music Award for Best Hip-Hop Artist. Now with his new found fame the crow's came out when Eminem's mother sued him for $10 Million based on negative accusations made about her and his childhood throughout his LP, this wouldn't be the last time Eminem ends up in court againsts his mother!

The start of 2000 showed just how well Eminem was doing when he was nominated for 2 Brit Awards, won 2 Grammy Awards for Best Rap Solo Performance and Best Rap Album and won another 4 awards - The Online Hip-Hop Award for Best Artist Web Site, Best New Artist, Hottest Music Video and a Detroit Music Award for Outstanding National Album. He would now release his next LP "The Marshall Mathers LP" which flew off the shelves selling over 1.7 Million copies in the first week making a new record for a solo artist. The album didn't come without it's conflicts and controversies, the album created a feud with pop princess Christina Aguilera (the single "The Real Slim Shady" alleged that she had performed oral sex on both Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst and MTV's Carson Daly). His mother filed a defamation lawsuit against him for $1 Million which would end up being dismissed and accusations of homophobia and sexism mostly centering around the songs "Kill You" and "Kim" would be an ongoing battle over Eminem's lyrics even today!. Within a month "The Marshall Mathers LP" went 5x Platinum and topped the Pop LP charts for 8 weeks, the R&B LP charts for 4 weeks and the Internet Album charts for 2 weeks. At the end of the year "The Marshall Mathers LP" went 7x Platinum and was recognised as the 2nd biggest selling LP in the U.S. with sales of over 7.9 million copies. In 2001 "The Marshall Mathers LP" went 8x Platinum and Eminem released his next LP, "The Eminem Show" which sold over 1.3 Million copies in the first week and went 4x Platinum within 2 month's By the end of the year "The Eminem Show" was the top selling LP of the year with over 7.6 million sales. He would now go into the movies and started filming "8 Mile" which pulled in $54 Million in the first weekend after it's relase in October. Eminem would then go on to release a further 2 LP's, "Encore" and "Curtain Call" and would be presented with tons of awards for his music.

His life has been an interesting battle of struggles and successes, from the hood to the top Eminem has always followed himself and done what he wanted. Today he has won more awards than can fit into a mansion and has had huge success in both his music and film releases. He has taken a step back from his own music today and is concentrating more on developing other artists with his own record label "Shady Records". You can be sure that we haven't seen the last of Eminem...

Eminem Biography 2

The average rapper wouldn't be able to grace the pages of Rap Pages, VIBE, Rolling Stone, Spin, The Source, URB and Stress and go on a national tour months before their major-label debut album is released. Then again, Eminem isn't an average rapper. He's phenomenal.

The impending release of the The Slim Shady LP, his first set on Aftermath/Interscope Records, already has underground hip-hop heads fiending for Eminem. Chock full of dazzling lyrical escapades that delve into the mind of a violently warped and vulgar yet extremely talented wordsmith, the 14-cut collection contains some of the most memorable and demented lyrics ever recorded.

For Eminem, his potentially controversial and undoubtedly offensive songs will strike a chord with a multitude of hip-hop loyalists who believe they have little to lose and everything to gain.

"I'm not alone in feeling the way I feel," he says. "I believe that a lot of people can relate to my shit--whether white, black, it doesn't matter. Everybody has been through some shit, whether it's drastic or not so drastic. Everybody gets to the point of 'I don't give a fuck.'"

Those words are more than just a slogan for the Detroit resident. "I Just Don't Give A Fuck" and "Brain Damage" are the two songs comprising Eminem's initial single from The Slim Shady LP. Each tune is sure to paralyze meek listeners with their relentless lyrical assault. Produced primarily by long-time collaborators FBT Productions, the Slim Shady LP also features beatwork from Aftermath CEO Dr. Dre. The N.W.A. alum handled beats for "My Name Is" (the second single), "Guilty Conscience" and "Role Model."

Dr. Dre was so impressed after hearing Eminem freestyling on a Los Angeles radio station that he put out a manhunt for the Michigan rhymer. Shortly thereafter, Dre signed Eminem to his Aftermath imprint and the two began working together. Thoroughly impressed with Eminem's previously released independent Slim Shady EP, Dre said they would include many of the EP's tracks on the album.

"It was an honor to hear the words out of Dre's mouth that he liked my shit," Eminem says. "Growing up, I was one of the biggest fans of N.W.A, from putting on the sunglasses and looking in the mirror and lipsinking to wanting to be Dr. Dre, to be Ice Cube. This is the biggest hip-hop producer ever."

But like many other rappers, Eminem's rise to stardom was far from easy. After being born in Kansas City and traveling back and forth between KC and the Detroit metropolitan area, Eminem and his mother moved into the Eastside of Detroit when he was 12. Switching schools every two to three months made it difficult to make friends, graduate and to stay out of trouble.

Rap, however, became Eminem's solace. Battling schoolmates in the lunchroom brought joy to what was otherwise a painful existence. Although he would later drop out of school and land several minimum-wage-paying, full-time jobs, his musical focus remained constant.

Eminem released his debut album, Infinite, in 1996. Desperate to be embraced by the Motor City's hip-hop scene, Eminem rapped in such a manner that he was accused of sounding like Nas and AZ.

"Infinite was me trying to figure out how I wanted my rap style to be, how I wanted to sound on the mic and present myself," he recalls. "It was a growing stage. I felt like Infinite was like a demo that just got pressed up."

After being thoroughly disappointed and hurt by the response Infinite received, Eminem began working on what would later become the Slim Shady EP -- a project he made for himself. Featuring several scathing lines about local music industry personalities as well as devious rants about life in general, the set quickly caught the ear of hip-hop's difficult-to-please underground.

"I had nothing to lose, but something to gain," Eminem says of that point in his life. "If I made an album for me and it was to my satisfaction, then I succeeded. If I didn't, then my producers were going to give up on the whole rap thing we were doing. I made some shit that I wanted to hear. The Slim Shady EP, I lashed out on everybody who talked shit about me."

By presenting himself as himself, Eminem and his career took off. Soon after giving the Rap Coalition's Wendy Day a copy of the Infinite album at a chance meeting, she helped the aspiring lyrical gymnast secure a spot at the Coalition’s 1997 Rap Olympics in Los Angeles, where he won second place in the freestyle competition. During the trip, Eminem and his manager, Paul Rosenberg, gave a few people from Interscope Records his demo and he made his major radio debut on the world famous Wake Up Show with Sway and Tech. Realizing that this was the opportunity of his lifetime, Eminem delivered a furious medley of lyrics that wowed his hosts and radio audience alike.

"I felt like it's my time to shine," Eminem says of that performance. "I have to rip this. At that time, I felt that it was a life or death situation."

Eminem would soon record the underground classic "5 Star Generals." This record helped establish him in Japan, New York and Los Angeles. It also helped him earn a spot on the inaugural Lyricist Lounge tour, which took him to stages from Philadelphia to Los Angeles.

Set to take the hip-hop world by storm with his unique lyrical approach and punishing production, Eminem and his The Slim Shady LP are sure to have listeners captivated.

"I do say things that I think will shock people," he says. "But I don't do things to shock people. I'm not trying to be the next Tupac, but I don't know how long I'm going to be on this planet. So while I'm here, I might as well make the most of it."

- Official Site, Eminem.com

Eminem Biography 3

Who would have guessed that a white boy from Michigan would be the one to move today's jaded hip-hop world? Without any warning, Eminem burst onto the rap scene spouting more vulgarity than ever with his first 14-cut collection, The Slim Shady LP, distributed by Aftermath/Interscope Records. "I Just Don't Give a F--k," the signature piece on his demented album, and "Brain Damage," which literally did just that to listeners, are the two most notable songs exhibiting for his dirty mouth. So good, in fact, that legendary rap artist/producer Dr. Dre scouted the angry chirpster after hearing him freestyle on the radio to collaborate on Dre's own label, Aftermath. The impressed Dre did not hesitate to include many of Slim's independently released EP tracks as Eminem jumped at the offer to work with "the biggest hip-hop producer ever."

As randomly offensive as his lyrics may seem, Eminem has mastered his talent into a form of reclaiming his pride. He spent his childhood roaming from his birthplace, Kansas City, to Detroit with his mother, never being able to find a stable hometown and school. Hence he pursued a life and identity in the hip-hop culture by releasing a debut album, Infinite, in 1996. Ironically, the response to his debut stifled his self-expression as he was labelled as a Nas and AZ sound-alike. Ripe for revenge, Eminem bombarded his critics with The Slim Shady EP, which not only gave the rapper a chance at originality but also at stirring controversy with his remorseless tunes of fury.

Yet it would do him no justice to dismiss him as a spiteful cursing machine. His fascinating freestyle ability is easy to underestimate or even recognize with the scorching flames blowing out of his mouth. At the start of his rap career, Eminem personally sent a copy of his overlooked debut album to Wendy Day from the Rap Coalition. Her nod of approval got him into the Coalition's 1997 Rap Olympics in Los Angeles, where he was honoured with second place in the freestyle competition. With the help of his manager, Paul Rosenberg, Interscope Records got a hold of his demo. Finally Eminem decided that it was his "time to shine" on his radio debut on the world-famous Wake Up Show with Sway and Tech by spewing a most ferocious lyrical mix that literally slapped the faces of the hosts and listeners wide awake. His underground classic "5 Star General" stretched out to Japan, New York, and Los Angeles, which also won him a spot on the inaugural Lyricist Lounge tour.

Before long, Eminem was a superstar and one of music's most controversial figures. His shocking lyrics (both solo and with side posse D12), his duet with Elton John, his public trials with his on/off wife and estranged mother...all of these things and more kept him in the public eye so often, he made Tommy Lee look like a social recluse. But Eminem's music kept his profile high too, as his Slim Shady and Marshall Mathers LPs sold by the millions; the latter was even nominated for several Grammys, including album of the year.

In the age of bored and hungry hip-hopsters, Eminem, with his fiery eyes and blazing lyrics, has broken into the rap and hip-hop dome by melting the image of the sold-out Vanilla Ice. You may hate his anger, but it's his only ammunition, and as long he is who he is, Eminem is going to take nothing back.

- Interscope