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Eminem
Background information
Birth name Marshall Bruce Mathers III
Also known as Slim Shady, Marshall Mathers
Born October 17, 1972 (1972-10-17) (age 34)
St. Joseph, Missouri, USA
Origin Detroit, Michigan, USA
Genre(s) Hip hop
Occupation(s) Rapper, producer, actor
Instrument(s) Vocals
Years active 1996 – present
Label(s) Bassmint Productions, Mashin' Duck, Shady, Aftermath, Interscope
Associated
acts D12, Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, G-Unit, Soul Intent, Stat Quo, Bobby Creekwater,
Ca$his, The Alchemist, Obie Trice
Website www.eminem.com
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), commonly known as Eminem
or Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer and actor from the
Detroit, Michigan area. Having sold seventy million albums worldwide, Eminem
is one of the best-selling musicians of the early 2000s, and one of the
best-selling rappers of all time.[1] Eminem was discovered by pioneer
gangsta rapper and producer Dr. Dre, who signed him to his Aftermath
Entertainment label.
Nobel Laureate Seamus Heaney has praised Mathers for his "verbal energy" and
for arousing popular interest in poetry and lyrics.[2] Eminem is infamous
for the controversy surrounding many of his lyrics. With the enormous
success of his highly acclaimed album The Marshall Mathers LP and its
subsequent nomination for four Grammy awards including Album of the Year,
critics such as GLAAD denounced his lyrics as homophobic and misogynist,
while others protested that it promoted violence.[3]
Biography
Early Life
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Born in St. Joseph, Missouri to Marshall Bruce Mathers II and Deborah Nelson
Mathers, of Scottish, German, and English descent.[4] He was partially
raised in Roseville/Sterling Heights Michigan and was interested in hip hop
from a young age. He moved back to Detroit where he met Proof in the area of
E. Seven Mile & Hoover Ave on a side street named Dredsen (which he states
in a You Tube video.)[5] where he began performing as early as 13 in a group
called Bassmint Productions and they made an EP called Steppin' onto the
Scene. He later gained some local attention in Soul Intent (a newly-renamed
Bassmint Productions), in 1995, making his first official tape, Fuckin’
Backstabber/Soul Intent. In 1996, he released an independent underground
album named Infinite. The album received no airplay and a mixed response
from critics, Eminem followed Infinite with The Slim Shady EP, which saw his
lyrics take a decidedly darker turn, in songs like "No One's Iller" and
"Murder Murder", the latter of which he talks about having to commit crimes
to feed his daughter. After this album he received much attention and mixed
reviews in the hip hop underground due to his distinctive style and the fact
that he was white in a predominantly black genre.
Eminem had done a notable amount of rapping with fellow Detroit MC Royce da
5'9" early in his career. They referred to themselves as Bad Meets Evil,
with Eminem playing the Evil and Royce playing the Bad in the song of the
same name. Royce da 5'9" and Eminem were considered to be two of the best
underground MCs in Detroit and were both respected for their skills.
While Royce and Eminem were great friends and had mutual respect for one
another, both personally and musically, they eventually had a falling out.
Recent rumors suggest that the argument was subdued prior to Proof's death.
Success
At Aftermath/Interscope, Mathers released The Slim Shady LP, which went on
to be one of the most popular albums of 1999, going triple platinum by the
end of the year. With the album's popularity came controversy surrounding
many of the album's lyrics. In "'97 Bonnie and Clyde", he describes a trip
with his infant daughter, disposing of the body of his wife. Another song,
"Guilty Conscience", ends with him encouraging a man to murder his wife and
her lover. "Guilty Conscience" also marked the beginning of the powerful
friendship and musical bond that Dr. Dre and Eminem would share. The two
label-mates would later collaborate on a line of hit songs, including
"Forgot About Dre" and "What's the Difference" from Dr. Dre's album 2001,
"Bitch Please II" from the Marshall Mathers LP, "Say What You Say" from The
Eminem Show and "Encore" from Encore. When Dr. Dre first heard his tape, he
thought Eminem was black.[6]
The Marshall Mathers LP was released in May 2000, and quickly sold two
million copies. It was Eminem's fastest selling album to date.[7] The first
single released from the album, "The Real Slim Shady", was a huge hit,
thanks in part to the catchy rhythm and chorus line, "Will the real Slim
Shady please stand up?" (adapted from the catch phrase of the TV quiz show
To Tell the Truth). It also created some buzz by insulting celebrities and
making dubious claims about them; he implies, among other things, that
Christina Aguilera performed oral sex on Fred Durst (of Limp Bizkit) and
Carson Daly (of MTV's Total Request Live). In his second single, "The Way I
Am", he reveals to his fans the pressures from his record company to top "My
Name Is" and sell more records, and dismisses the alleged controversial link
between music such as that of Marilyn Manson and shootings such as Columbine
High School as absurd, instead blaming the parents. Eminem had parodied
shock rocker Marilyn Manson in the video "My Name Is", the artists are now
on good terms. They have performed a remix of the song "The Way I Am"
together in concert.[8] In the third single, "Stan" (which samples Dido's
"Thank You"), Eminem attempts to deal with his new-found fame, taking on the
perspective of a deranged fan who kills himself and his pregnant girlfriend,
mirroring "'97 Bonnie & Clyde" on The Slim Shady LP. It was named as the
third greatest rap song of all time in a list compiled by Q Magazine,[9] and
came in 10th in a similar survey conducted by Top40-Charts.com.[10] More
importantly, it was ranked 290th in Rolling Stone Magazine's "500 Greatest
Songs Of All Time".[11]
Mathers' third major album, The Eminem Show, was released in summer 2002 and
proved to be another smash hit for the rapper shooting to number one on the
charts and selling well over 1 million copies in its first week of release.
It featured the single "Without Me", an apparent sequel to "The Real Slim
Shady", in which he makes derogatory comments about boy bands, Limp Bizkit,
Moby, and Lynne Cheney, among others. The album reflected on the impact of
his rise to fame, his relationship with his wife and daughter, and his
status in the hip-hop community. He also addresses the charges he faced over
assaulting a bouncer he saw kissing his wife in 2000. While there is clear
anger present on several tracks, this album was considerably less
inflammatory than the previous, and as such did not face any protests of
misogyny and homophobia that had plagued The Marshall Mathers LP.
The year 2004 saw the release of Mathers' fourth major album, Encore. The
album was another chart-topper for the rapper, driven by the single "Just
Lose It", notable for its lampooning of Michael Jackson. Despite the comedic
theme of the lead single, Encore also had its fair share of serious subject
matter, including the anti-war track "Mosh". By the end of 2005 Mathers was
back with a new single, "When I'm Gone", recorded for the greatest-hits set
Curtain Call: The Hits. Eminem often said that one of his most influential
rappers in his career was Tupac Shakur, during an interview for the Tupac:
Resurrection documentary.[12]
Drug use
Mathers is no stranger to drugs and alcohol, as suggested by a large number
of his songs, including "Drug Ballad", "These Drugs" (with D12) and "Under
the Influence". The song "I'm Shady" (The Slim Shady LP, 1999) includes the
explanatory line "well, I do take pills (ecstasy, acid, or prescription
drugs), don't do speed / don't do crack, don't do coke / I do smoke weed /
don't do smack / I do do 'shrooms, do drink beer / I just wanna make a few
things clear". Other tracks, such as "Just Don't Give a Fuck", suggest
cocaine use. However, with a sentence of two years of probation taking
effect in 2001, during which he was subject to mandatory regular drug
testing, his recreational drug use was put to an end. This is supported with
references to his drug use in his music all-but disappearing after 2001, and
comments by late band-mate Proof, who stated that Mathers "sobered up".[13]
However, he did turn to Zolpidem sleeping pills for relief of sleeping
troubles and eventually went to rehab to recover from the addiction. In
summer 2005, Mathers embarked on his first U.S. concert run in three years,
the Anger Management 3 Tour, featuring Lil' Jon, 50 Cent and G-Unit, D12,
Obie Trice, The Alchemist, and others. In August 2005, Mathers canceled the
European leg of the tour and subsequently announced that he had entered drug
rehabilitation for treatment for a "dependency on sleep medication".[14]
Recent events
In 2005, some industry insiders speculated that Mathers was considering
ending his rapping career after six years and several multi-platinum albums.
Speculation began in early 2005 about a double-disc album to be released
late that year, rumored to be titled The Funeral. [15] The album manifested
itself under the name Curtain Call: The Hits, and was released on December
6, 2005 under Aftermath Entertainment.
In July 2005, the Detroit Free Press broke news of a potential final bow for
Mathers as a solo performer, quoting members of his inside circle who said
that he will begin to fully embrace the role of producer and label
executive. The Free Press, Mathers' hometown paper, wrote that the aptly
titled Encore album would now stand as his final solo album.[16]
Mathers announced via MTV News that he does not plan on retiring soon,
though he is planning on taking a break to produce music. [17] He is still
uncertain whether another album will be released, but his career has not
come to a full stop. He is continuing to work out of the spotlight.
At "Anger Management" in Madison Square Garden and Atlanta's HiFi Buys
Amphitheater, he openly announced that he is not retiring and indicates this
is all just gossip by saying the moon exploding is a more credible rumor.
However, many still speculate that he will be retiring and the announcement
at Madison Square Garden was only a ploy to distract the fans.
Adding to the already feverish rumors from fans, Mathers released a track on
Curtain Call: The Hits entitled "When I'm Gone". The lyrics feature the
topic of Slim Shady's destructive power over Marshall Mathers' life, and
talks of laying his alter ego to rest, one line featuring the lyrics "I turn
around, find a gun on the ground, cock it/ Put it to my brain, scream 'Die
Shady!' and pop it. *gun fires*"
On December 6, 2005, the day Curtain Call: The Hits was released, Mathers
denied that he was retiring on Detroit-based WKQI's "Mojo in the Mornin'"
radio show, but implied that he would at least be taking a break as an
artist, saying, "I'm at a point in my life right now where I feel like I
don't know where my career is going… This is the reason that we called it
'Curtain Call,' because this could be the final thing. We don't know."[18]
Eminem has had some activity since the release of Curtain Call: The Hits.
Eminem also rapped a verse in a live performance of Busta Rhymes' "Touch It"
remix at the 2006 BET Music Awards on June 27, 2006.
On August 15, 2006, Obie Trice released Second Round's on Me. Eminem
produced 8 tracks on the album. He was also featured in the song "There They
Go".
Eminem is featured in a new Akon single "Smack That" which appeared on
Akon's new album Konvicted. He also appears in the video with a new tattoo
and a green polo. According to Akon, Eminem has canceled his retirement
plans and is making a new album. He said, "Eminem told me he was getting
bored with everything, which is why he took a break. But he's back working
on an album and I've got some records ready for him to use on it. We've
talked about doing something together for so long, but our schedules made it
impossible. It was our chemistry that got him out of retirement".[19] On
November 19, "Smack That" topped the Official UK Singles Chart and claimed
Eminem his 7th UK Number One Single. In December 2006, it was nominated for
"Best Rap/Sung Collaboration" at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards.
Producer Swizz Beatz has also said in an interview that he has sent some new
tracks to Eminem. [20]
Eminem was set to appear on Tech N9ne's 2006 album Everready: The Religion
on track entitled "My World" along with Tech and Brotha Lynch Hung, but it
has been said that the passing of Proof prevented Eminem from contributing
his verse.
On December 5, 2006, Eminem released an album compilation entitled Eminem
Presents the Re-Up, featuring artists from the Shady Records roster. The
first single released was "You Don't Know", which features 50 Cent, Lloyd
Banks, and new artist Ca$his.
Eminem is known to be featuring on a future album release by Elton John.[21]
According to 50 Cent, Eminem is secretly recording a new album. He said
"He's got a new album coming. He's not gonna tell people that, but he's
making new music. I've heard a few songs, and it's hot. He won't tell nobody
he's working on a new album, but I'll tell you: he's working on new music.
And once he locks into it, like, 'This is my favorite shit,' it's gonna come
out." When asked if the new material is angry or wacky, Jackson replies,
"Both. The whole range. You know, Michael Jordan was supposed to play
basketball. Floyd Mayweather was meant to box. And Eminem was meant to rap."
[22]
"Real life Stan"
An aspiring Canadian rapper (Kyle Spratt, of Windsor, Ontario) reportedly
snatched Kim Mathers' phone at a Windsor bingo hall, where he worked, while
she was outside smoking. Spratt would then call Eminem on her phone asking
him to listen to his demo track. Spratt accused him of "pretending it wasn't
him and he did a fake voice". Frustrated with the cold reception he received
from his idol, Spratt, who recorded the conversations he had with both the
Detroit police officer and Eminem, sampled them in a song titled "Slim
Sellout" attacking the rapper. Spratt posted the song on his MySpace page
and received 1,400 hits in two days. The link to the song was removed from
Spratt's website on Wednesday (May 30) and Windsor police paid the jilted
rapper a visit. According to Windsor police Inspector Greg Renaud, Detroit
police contacted them saying that Spratt told Kim Mathers that if he wasn't
going to get some promotion from Eminem, "he was going to post the photos of
[their] children on the web." Spratt told The Star (a local newspaper) that
the police checked his computer but didn't find any photos. He also claims
that Kim Mathers misread one of the text messages he had sent her. Spratt
also told the newspaper that
“ I was text messaging back and forth with Kim Mathers and she was being
pretty rude to me, so I said something to the effect of, 'wait until I get a
hold of paparazzi,'" Spratt explained. "But, like, I was just trying to get
her going. It did get her going. She assumed that I took pictures off her
phone, which I did not. "They said that Kim thinks that I'm going to put out
pictures of her kids that were on the phone, which is not true," he
stressed. "Kim was just doing that to stir the pot. ”
Renaud said the Mathers family will not be pressing charges because Spratt
has already paid for his crime by losing his job at the bingo hall.[23]
Controversies
Alleged homophobia
With the enormous popularity of The Marshall Mathers LP, the controversy
surrounding him grew even larger, especially when it was nominated for a
Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Though Mathers had always claimed that
his lyrics were not meant to be taken seriously, and that he had nothing
against homosexuals or women, the gay rights group GLAAD organized a boycott
of the Grammys. Mathers responded to this by rapping "Stan" on-stage with
openly gay singer Elton John, ending the performance by hugging John. This
gesture failed to appease many of his critics. He said he did not know Elton
John was gay, but he told Kurt Loder after the awards show that he respected
him: "Of course I'd heard of Elton John," Eminem said, "but I didn't know he
was gay. I didn't know anything about his personal life. I didn't really
care, but being that he was gay and he had my back, I think it made a
statement in itself saying that he understood where I was coming from."[24]
He had also included it on his Curtain Call: The Hits compilation album.
Violence towards women
The two 'eye-opening' songs most often cited as examples in The Marshall
Mathers LP of Mathers' supposed misogyny were "Kill You", and "Kim." Critics
claimed the former portrayed extremely violent abuse against women in
general and contained a line about him raping his own mother. The latter is
not so much a song as it is a reenactment of a fictional fight between him
and his wife, although his shouted, hoarse lines do rhyme. Despite his
conflicting expressions of love and hate throughout the track, he ends up
slitting Kim's throat at the end, accompanied by cries of "Bleed, bitch,
bleed!" Several people objected to the graphic description of domestic
violence. On the clean version of the CD, the track was removed and replaced
with a song almost entirely devoid of profanity called "The Kids."
Criticism from other artists
Eminem's provocative style has resulted in a number of high-profile feuds
erupting between the rapper and some of his music industry peers. He has at
one time or another had disputes with artists including Ja Rule, former
Source magazine co-owner Raymond "Benzino" Scott, Everlast, Royce Da 5'9",
Canibus, Insane Clown Posse, Vanilla Ice, Michael Jackson, Will Smith,
Britney Spears, Mariah Carey, Limp Bizkit (specifically members Fred Durst
and DJ Lethal), Jermaine Dupri, Moby, Esham, Cage, Stan, Fat Joe and
Christina Aguilera, as well as Christopher Reeve.
In all of these beefs Eminem and other have more-or-less made peace. He has
used his many connections within the music industry, especially with mixtape
DJs, to release many unofficial diss tracks. His partnership with DJ Green
Lantern, while it lasted, led to several mixtapes entitled The Invasion. On
these mixtapes there were many songs unrelated to the animosity between
Eminem and his labelmates and other artists, though the majority of the
songs could easily be called diss tracks. The harshest of these was the
second, called Conspiracy Theory. It had several songs by Eminem and his
crew attacking a range of artists, particularly Ja Rule and Benzino,
including "Bump Heads," "Doe Ray Me," and a remix of the Tupac (2Pac) song
"Hail Mary" (with no contribution from the original artist).
In acceptance of his Grammy for Best Rap Album (for The Eminem Show) in
2003, he credited his rap influences, saying, "I made me a little list of
MCs that I wanted to name off that inspired me to, to bring me where I am
today - cause honestly, I wouldn't be here without them. So the list goes
like this, and it's not in this order, but the list is this: Run-D.M.C., the
Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Kool G. Rap, Masta Ace, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Dr.
Dre, all of N.W.A., KRS-One, Treach from Naughty by Nature, Nas, 2Pac,
Biggie, Jay-Z. Thank you, 'cause I learned from all of you. Thank you."[25]
Eminem's "Mosh" marked the end of the long feud between Moby and Eminem;
when Moby complimented both the song and Eminem for his politically charged
song on his blog. Eminem has not attacked or criticized Moby since.
Chuck D of Public Enemy has shared both positive and negative critique of
Eminem having called him the "new" Elvis Presley.:"Eminem is the new Elvis
Presley because, number one, he has the respect for black music that Elvis
had. I think he's courteous and sympathetic to music and, unfortunately,
he's more sympathetic to music than many artists themselves." [26]
Criticism of George W. Bush
On December 8, 2003, the United States Secret Service admitted it was
"looking into" allegations that Mathers had threatened the President of the
United States after the unreleased song "We As Americans" leaked onto the
Web. The lyrics in question: "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 song was being recorded to possibly be on Encore, but
wound up on a bonus CD accompanying the album instead. The second use of the
word "dead" was backmasked in that version. The skit was also used in
Immortal Technique's song "Bin Laden", stated near the end. Immortal
Technique also attacks the president on the song. His song White America
from the Eminem Show album states :"sent to lead the march right up to The
steps of congress, and piss on the lawns of the White House, to burn the
flag and replace It with a parental advisory sticker, to spit liquor in the
faces of in this democracy of Hypocrisy, fuck you Ms. Cheney, fuck you
Tipper Gore, fuck you with the freest of speech this Divided states of
embarrassment will allow me to have, FUCK YOU!"
On October 26, 2004, a week before the 2004 U.S. Presidential election,
Eminem released the video for his song titled "Mosh" on the internet. The
song features a very strong anti-Bush message, with lyrics such as "fuck
Bush" and "this weapon of mass destruction that we call our president." The
video features Mathers gathering up an army of people (including rapper
Lloyd Banks) presented as victims of the Bush administration and leading
them to the White House. However, once the army breaks in, it is revealed
that they are there to simply register to vote, and the video ends with the
words "VOTE Tuesday November 2" on the screen.
After Bush won the election, the video's ending was changed to Eminem and
the protesters invading while Bush was giving a speech.
Michael Jackson
On October 12, 2004, a week after the release of "Just Lose It", Eminem's
first single off Encore, Michael Jackson called into the Los Angeles-based
Steve Harvey radio show to report his displeasure with the video, which
parodies Jackson's child molestation trial, plastic surgery, and an incident
in which Jackson's hair caught on fire while filming a Pepsi commercial in
1984. The lyrics to "Just Lose It" also refer to Jackson's legal troubles,
however he does state in his song "...and that's not a stab at Michael/Thats
just a metaphor/I'm just psycho...". Many of Jackson's supporters and
friends spoke out about the video, including Stevie Wonder, who called the
video "kicking a man while he's down" and "bullshit",[27] and Steve Harvey
who declared, "Eminem has lost his ghetto pass. We want the pass back."[28]
In the video, Eminem also parodied Pee Wee Herman, MC Hammer, and a
Blonde-Ambition-touring Madonna.
Black Entertainment Television was the first channel to stop airing the
video. MTV, however, announced it would continue airing the video, and "Just
Lose It" became the #1 requested video on Total Request Live for the week
ending October 22. The Source, through its CEO Raymond "Benzino" Scott,
wanted not only the video to be pulled, but the song off the album, and a
public apology to Jackson from Mathers.[29]
Others dismissed "Just Lose It" as a tame "Weird Al" Yankovic-style
knockoff. Regarding Jackson's protest, Yankovic, who
parodied the Eminem song "Lose Yourself" on a track titled "Couch Potato" on
his 2003 album Poodle Hat, told the Chicago Sun-Times, "Last year, Eminem
forced me to halt production on the video for my "Lose Yourself" parody
because he somehow thought that it would be harmful to his image or career.
So the irony of this situation with Michael is not lost on me".
Other works and ventures
Acting career
Mathers made his 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; it was not performed at the ceremony,
reportedly because ABC wanted him to perform an edited version.
Mathers voiced a character in 50 Cent: Bulletproof, who is an aging corrupt
police officer that speaks in ebonics.
Mathers has also done some voice acting, both on Crank Yankers and a web
cartoon called The Slim Shady Show, which has since been pulled off-line and
is instead sold on DVD.
Eminem will star in the upcoming film Have Gun - Will Travel in which he
will play a bounty hunter called Paladin. He will also be involved in either
the soundtrack or scoring. [30]
Shady Records
As Mathers succeeded in multi-platinum record sales, Interscope granted him
his own record label. He and his manager Paul Rosenberg created Shady
Records in late 2000. In 2002, Mathers signed 50 Cent through a joint
venture between Shady and Dr. Dre's Aftermath label. His own Detroit
collective D12 and rapper Obie Trice were signed to the Shady Records label.
In 2003, Mathers and Dr. Dre signed on Atlanta rapper Stat Quo to the
Shady/Aftermath roster. DJ Green Lantern, the former DJ for Mathers, was
signed to Shady Records until a dispute with 50 Cent forced him to depart
from the label; he is no longer associated with Mathers. [31] The Alchemist
is now officially Mathers' tour DJ. In 2005, Mathers officially signed
another Atlanta rapper known as Bobby Creekwater to his label along with
west coast rapper Ca$his.
In the Anger Management Tour of 2003 The Alchemist hurt his wrist,
preventing him from being the tour's DJ. Clinton Sparks filled in for him,
with the rectom playing and his name is mentioned on the album numerous
times.
Eminem as a producer
Mathers is also active as a producer of rap records. Besides being the
executive producer of D12's two albums, Devil's Night and D12 World, he has
also 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, Mathers
has produced and appeared on several songs by other famous rappers, such as
Jadakiss' "Welcome To D-Block", Jay-Z's "Renagade" and "Moment of Clarity"
Lloyd Banks' "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 Mathers himself, with
co-production from longtime collaborator Jeff Bass. He also split the
production with Dr. Dre on Encore. In 2004, Mathers was the Executive
Producer of 2Pac's posthumous album Loyal to the Game with 2Pac's mother
Afeni Shakur. He produced the UK #1 single "Ghetto Gospel" which featured
Elton John. On certain tracks on the album, 2Pac's voice was slowed down and
digitally altered to match the beat and make him say things like "2005" and
"G-Unit", angering many fans. Mathers has named 2Pac as his favorite rapper.
He has also produced "The Cross" off Nas's album God's Son.
Eminem in D12
In 2001, Mathers brought his rap group, D12, to the popular music scene. In
2001, D12 released their hit debut album Devil's Night.
The first single released off of the album was "Purple Pills" (radio named
"Purple Hills"), an ode to recreational drug use (although this was preceded
in the UK by a song called "Shit on You", which was included on the special
edition version of the album). The version of the song released on the radio
and music television was heavily rewritten to remove many of the song's
obscene lyrics, and renamed "Purple Hills". While the first single was a
massive hit, the album's second single, "Fight Music", was not as
successful, in part due to its timing in relation to the 9/11 attacks.
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". The other members of D12 have also
appeared as guests on all of Mathers' albums since The Marshall Mathers LP.
D12's third studio album won't be out earlier than August with a single in
June according to rumors. Proof will be heavily featured on the album and
this will be the final D12 album. [32]
Interscope/Shady/Aftermath Films
He has also stated a movie production company called Interscope/Shady/Aftermath
Films with Dr. Dre. The company has worked on 50 Cent's debut movie Get Rich
or Die Tryin' and will work on Eminem's next movie Have Gun — Will Travel.
Death of Proof
On April 11, 2006, Proof was killed by a gunshot wound to the head at
approximately 4:30am EDT (08:30 UTC) at the CCC Club on 8 Mile Road in
Detroit, Michigan after fatally shooting U.S. military veteran Keith Bender,
Jr.
Proof was buried on April 20, 2006 in The Fellowship Chapel, Detroit to a
full house of 2,000 with thousands mourning outside. Mathers and Obie Trice
both read eulogies at the service.
An excerpt: "I'm sure everybody who has ever met him, even just once, can
testify to the fact that he illuminated a room when he walked in it. I
believe that Proof loved people and people loved him. He was a magnet. He
lured you in. You wanted to learn about him, follow his swagger. Without
Proof, there would be no Eminem, no Slim Shady, and no D12."
Discography
* 1996: Infinite
* 1997: The Slim Shady EP
* 1999: The Slim Shady LP
* 2000: The Marshall Mathers LP
* 2002: The Eminem Show
* 2002: 8 Mile Soundtrack
* 2004: Encore
* 2005: Curtain Call: The Hits
* 2006: Eminem Presents the Re-Up
* 2007: King Mathers [33][34]
Filmography
* 2000: Da Hip Hop Witch (cameo)
* 2001: The Wash — as Chris
* 2002: 8 Mile — as Jimmy "B-Rabbit" Smith
* 2008: Have Gun — Will Travel — as Paladin
References
1. ^ Eminem. MTV.tv.
2. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/3033614.stm
3. ^ GLAAD: Eminem's Hate Lyrics. GLAAD.
4. ^ Ancestry of Marshall Bruce Mathers III. William Addams Reitwiesner
Genealogical Service.
5. ^ Proof and Eminem Freestyle *Very Rare*.
6. ^ http://www.dr-dre.com/info/interview_vh1_nuthin_but_an_m_thing.php
7. ^ http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5923810/eminem_bounces_britney_from_top_spot
8. ^ http://www.nyrock.com/worldbeat/02_2001/021601.asp
9. ^ http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/q150lists.htm
10. ^ http://top40-charts.com/features/top100_greatest_hiphop2.php
11. ^ http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/500songs
12. ^ http://www.mtv.com/bands/t/tupac/news_feature_102703/
13. ^ http://www.vh1.com/news/articles/1452709/03012002/eminem.jhtml
14. ^ http://www.abc.net.au/news/arts/theshallowend/200508/s1441976.htm
15. ^ http://www.1strowseats.com/blog/?p=32
16. ^ http://www.freep.com/entertainment/music/encore15e_20050715.htm
17. ^ http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1506087/20050721/eminem.jhtml
18. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/arts/AP-People-Eminem.html
19. ^ http://www.teenmusic.com/d.asp?r=135889&c=1020
20. ^ http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.4371/title.swizz-beatz-talks-work-with-eminem-2pac
21. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/4423941.stm
22. ^ http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/50%20cent%20confirms%20eminem%20album_1032019
23. ^ http://www.rapbasement.com/content/view/2892/35
24. ^ http://www.wndu.com/entertainment/022001/entertainment_6360.php
25. ^ http://www.mmguide.musicmatch.com/artist/artist.cgi?ARTISTID=650621
26. ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0195982/bio
27. ^ http://www.allhiphop.com/hiphopnews/?ID=3825
28. ^ http://www.allhiphop.com/hiphopnews/?ID=3606
29. ^ http://www.sohh.com/thewire/read.php?contentID=6321
30. ^ http://news.usti.net/home/news/cn/?/living.tv/1/wed/bd/Uus-eminem.R_Ti_GuD.html
31. ^ http://www.ballerstatus.net/news/read/id/91991464/
32. ^ http://www.rapbasement.com/content/view/2671/38/
33. ^ http://www.kingmathers.com
34. ^ http://youtube.com/watch?v=T6B0_ESdL9A
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