Eminem

After small roles in the 2001 film The Wash and as an extra in the 1998 Korn music video for "Got the Life" (during which he gave the band a demo tape), Eminem made his Hollywood debut in the semi-autobiographical 2002 film 8 Mile. He said it was a representation of growing up in Detroit rather than an account of his life. He recorded several new songs for the soundtrack, including "Lose Yourself" (which won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2003 and became the longest-running No. 1 hip hop single in history).[271] Eminem was absent from the ceremony and co-composer Luis Resto accepted the award.[272]

Eminem voiced an aging, corrupt, Ebonics-speaking police officer in the video game 50 Cent: Bulletproof and guested on the Comedy Central television show Crank Yankers and a Web cartoon, The Slim Shady Show[273] He was signed to star in an unmade film version of Have Gun – Will Travel,[274] and was considered for the role of David Rice in the 2008 film Jumper.[275] Eminem had a cameo appearance, arguing with Ray Romano, in the 2009 film Funny People. In a 2010 interview with Jonathan Ross, he stated "You know, I love music so much. This is my passion, this is what I want to do. Not saying that I won't do a movie ever again, but this is me."[276]

He played himself in the Entourage season-seven finale "Lose Yourself" with Christina Aguilera.[277] Although Eminem was offered the lead role in the 2013 science-fiction film Elysium, he turned it down because director Neill Blomkamp would not change its location from Los Angeles to Detroit.[278] Eminem had a cameo appearance as himself in the 2014 film The Interview. During an interview with the main character, Dave Skylark (James Franco), Eminem satirically comes out as gay.[279]

Books and memoirs

On November 21, 2000, Eminem published Angry Blonde, a non-fiction book featuring a commentary of several of his own songs, along with several previously unpublished photographs. On October 21, 2008, his autobiography The Way I Am was published. Detailing his struggles with poverty, drugs, fame, heartbreak and depression, it includes stories of his rise to fame, commentary about past controversies and original lyric sheets from "Stan" and "The Real Slim Shady".[280] An autobiography of Eminem's mother (My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem) was published the following month, in which Debbie Nelson describes her childhood and adolescence, meeting Eminem's father and her son's rise to (and struggles with) fame.

The Way I Am is Eminem's autobiography, published in 2008. The book was first published on October 21, 2008 by Dutton Adult. It is a collection of Eminem's personal stories, reflections, photographs, original artwork, and lyric sheets. It details his struggles with poverty, drugs, fame, heartbreak, family and depression, along with stories about his rise to fame and commentary on past controversies. The book is illustrated with never before published photos of Eminem's life. It also contains original drawings, previously unpublished lyric sheets, and other rare memorabilia. The autobiography is named after the song of the same name.

Mom's Spaghetti Restaurant

On September 29, 2021, Eminem and Union Joints opened a spaghetti restaurant at 2131 Woodward Ave in Detroit. It is named after the lyrics "His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy / There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti" from the song "Lose Yourself" which became an internet meme.[281][282] Mom's Spaghetti was previously a pop-up in Detroit in 2017 and at Coachella in 2018.[283][284]

Eminem appeared in two commercials which were shown during Super Bowl XLV. In the first, a one-minute spot for Lipton's Brisk iced tea, he is a claymation figure.[285] In the second, a two-minute ad – the longest in Super Bowl history at the time – for the Chrysler 200, Eminem drives through Detroit (with "Lose Yourself" as the soundtrack) to his show at the Fox Theatre.[286][287]

Charity work

Eminem established the Marshall Mathers Foundation to aid disadvantaged youth. The foundation works in conjunction with a charity founded by Norman Yatooma, a Detroit attorney.[288] During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, he donated a pair of Air Jordan 4 Retro Eminem Carhartt shoes, which are rare, to be raffled off with proceeds going to COVID-19 relief.[289] That same year, he donated "mom's spaghetti", a reference to a line in his song "Lose Yourself", to healthcare workers at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit.[290]

Royalty Flow

In September 2017, a company called Royalty Flow (a subsidiary of Royalty Exchange), filed to issue an IPO under SEC Regulation A+ to raise money with the intent of purchasing either 15% or 25% of Eminem's former production team's (The Bass Brothers, aka FBT Productions) share of his sound-recording royalties.[291][292][293][294]

Politics

Eminem has expressed his political views in multiple songs. Instead of endorsing presidential candidates, he has primarily focused on criticizing candidates. The first was "Mosh", which was released in 2004, a few weeks before the 2004 United States presidential election, and heavily criticized then-president George W. Bush but did not directly endorse John Kerry either.[295] He would not express political views again until the 2016 United States presidential election when he released "Campaign Speech", which criticized presidential candidate Donald Trump.[296] The following year, he criticized Trump in a freestyle titled "The Storm". In the freestyle, he expressed support for former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and the U.S. national anthem protests, and expressed his displeasure for any of his fans that support Trump.[297] In his song "Darkness", he heavily references the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting, and at the end of the music video expresses his support for gun control.[298] The week before the 2020 United States presidential election, he approved his song "Lose Yourself" to be used in a campaign video for Joe Biden.[299][300]

Family

Eminem has been scrutinized, both as a rapper and personality.[46] He was married twice to Kimberly Anne "Kim" Scott. He met Kim in high school while he stood on a table with his shirt off rapping LL Cool J's "I'm Bad".[301] Kim and her twin sister Dawn had run away from home; they moved in with Eminem and his mother when he was 15 and he began an on-and-off relationship with Kim in 1989.

Mathers and Scott were married in 1999 and divorced in 2001. Their daughter Hailie was born on December 25, 1995. Although Eminem told Rolling Stone in 2002, "I would rather have a baby through my penis than get married again," he and Kim briefly remarried in January 2006. He filed for divorce in early April,[302] agreeing to joint custody of Hailie.[303]

Eminem also has custody of his sister-in-law Dawn's daughter,[304] and Kim's child from another relationship.[305][306]