Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), better known by his stage namesEminem and Slim Shady,[1] is an Academy Award-[2] and multiple Grammy Award-winning Americanrap artist. Having sold over seventy million albums worldwide,[3] Eminem is one of the highest-selling musicians of the early 2000s, thus making him one of the highest-selling rap artists of all time.[3] Eminem was discovered by rapper and producer Dr. Dre, who later signed Eminem to his record label, Aftermath Entertainment.
Nobel LaureateSeamus Heaney has praised Mathers for his "verbal energy" and for arousing popular interest in poetry and lyrics.[4] Rapper Chuck D of the group Public Enemy and columnist L. Brent Bozell III have compared Eminem to Elvis Presley due to their perceptions of Eminem's music being countercultural and antiestablishment.[5][6] Eminem is infamous for the controversy surrounding many of his lyrics. With the success of his highly acclaimed album,[7]The Marshall Mathers LP and its subsequent nomination for four Grammy awards including Album of the Year,[8] critics such as GLAAD denounced his lyrics as homophobic and misogynist, while others claimed that it promoted violence.[9] In 2002, he starred in the semi-autobiographical movie 8 Mile.