Background and career
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and record executive. Known for his rap flow and conscious rap, which includes political criticism and social commentary, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time, often credited with popularizing hip-hop in Middle America and the acceptance of white rappers. While much of his transgressive art during the late 1990s and early 2000s made him a controversial figure, Eminem has become a representation of popular angst in lower-income America. After the release of his debut album, Infinite (1996), and the extended play Slim Shady EP (1997), Eminem signed with Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment and achieved mainstream popularity with The Slim Shady LP (1999). Each of his next two releases, The Marshall Mathers LP (2000) and The Eminem Show (2002), sold over one million copies in a single week; the latter became the best-selling album worldwide in 2002 and the best-selling hip-hop album of all time.
After the release of Encore (2004), Eminem took a hiatus due in part to struggles with prescription drug addiction and death of long-time friend Proof. He returned to the music industry with the releases of Relapse (2009) and Recovery (2010); the latter was the best-selling album worldwide in 2010. Each of his subsequent releases—The Marshall Mathers LP 2 (2013), Revival (2017), Kamikaze (2018), Music to Be Murdered By (2020), and The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grâce) (2024)—has debuted atop the US Billboard 200 chart. Eminem was also a member of the hip-hop groups New Jacks, Soul Intent, Outsidaz, and D12, as well as the duo Bad Meets Evil with Royce da 5'9". In 2002, he starred in the drama film 8 Mile, receiving critical acclaim for playing a dramatized version of himself. "Lose Yourself", a song from the 8 Mile soundtrack, topped the US Billboard Hot 100 chart for 12 weeks—the most for a solo rap song—and won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, making him the first hip-hop act to ever win the award.
His other ventures include co-founding the record label Shady Records, establishing the Sirius XM Radio channel Shade 45 and opening the restaurant Mom's Spaghetti, a lyric from the song “Lose Yourself”. Eminem is the best-selling rapper and one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with estimated sales of over 220 million records. He has 11 number-one albums, an unbeaten record, going 11 for 11, on the Billboard 200 and five number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100. One of the highest-certified musicians in the United States, Eminem has seven diamond certifications from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In addition to an Academy Award, his accolades include 15 Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, 17 Billboard Music Awards, 15 MTV Video Music Awards, an Oscar induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Billboard named him the Artist of the 2000s and Rolling Stone ranked him among the greatest artists and greatest songwriters of all time.
Marshall Bruce Mathers III was born on October 17, 1972, in St. Joseph, Missouri, the only child of Deborah "Debbie" Nelson and Marshall Bruce Mathers Jr. His mother nearly died during her 73-hour labor with him. Eminem's parents were in a band called Daddy Warbucks, playing in Ramada Inns along the Dakotas–Montana border before they separated. His father abandoned his family when Eminem was a year and a half old, and his mother raised him herself in poverty. He wrote letters to his father, but Nelson said that they all came back marked "return to sender". Eminem and his mother shuttled among states, rarely staying in one house for more than a year or two and mostly living with family members. Locations included St. Joseph; Savannah, Missouri; Kansas City; Warren, Michigan; and Roseville, Michigan, before settling in Detroit when Eminem was 12. For much of his youth, Eminem and his mother lived in a bungalow-style house in a working-class, primarily black neighborhood in Detroit.
How Eminem makes money
After the release of his debut album, Infinite (1996), and the extended play Slim Shady EP (1997), Eminem signed with Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment and achieved mainstream popularity with The Slim Shady LP (1999).
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth, in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
