The bad news came on Monday, December 3 Eminem’s mother, Debbie Nelson, Died at age 69 after battle with lung cancer. He died in St. Joseph, Md., from complications. TMZ The news was first to be reported. The death of a parent is highly influential, and it’s no secret that the rapper had a complicated relationship with his mother, who he reportedly supported financially.
© GettyDebbie welcomed Eminem into the world in 1972 Marshall Bruce Mathers Jr., although he did not know his father. As he rose to superstardom, the rapper accused him of alcohol and drug abuse in hit songs like “My Mom” (1999) and “My Name Is” (1999) where he rapped, “I just found out my momma more Dope dope than me (damn) · I told him I was going to be a famous rapper and name him.
In 1999, she sued him for $10 million for defamation after her lyrics and interviews portrayed her as a neglectful mother and drug addict. He ultimately won a $25,000 settlement. But the case didn’t stop Eminem from singing about it. In the 2002 track “Cleanin’ Out My Closet,” he blasts his mother from start to finish, even saying he suffers from Munchausen syndrome by proxy, “Go through the public housing system, suffer from Munchausen syndrome/ All my life I’ve been led to believe that I was sick when I wasn’t.”
© Grosby GroupIn his 2008 memoir, My son Marshall, my son Eminem, Debbie shared her heartbreak over their split and claimed she wanted to set the record straight.
“I wasn’t happy when he made a whole new life for himself – what mother wants to be known as a pill-popping alcoholic who lives on welfare?” She wrote “To be honest, I was heartbroken. The lies started coming thick and fast—and not just from Marshall. I think he forgot about the good times we had, and this book is my way of setting the record straight.”
© GettyEminem apologizes
Debbie was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010. In 2013, Eminem publicly apologized to her in his song “Headlights” and admitted that he had tried his best. He also promised to stop performing “Cleaning Out My Closet”. “But I’m sorry for Mama ‘Cleanin’ Out My Closet,’ I was pissed at the time. That song I don’t play at shows anymore, and I cringe every time it comes on the radio,” he sings.
When Eminem was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022, Debbie congratulated him in a now-deleted video, saying, “I knew you were going to get there. It’s been a long journey. I’m very, very proud of you.” He also praised his granddaughter Hailey Z. “And I’m so proud of my oldest daughter, Hailey Jade,” she said. “I want to tell you, Hayley, great job on your podcast, and God bless you. I love you so much.”
Debbie’s death comes five years after Eminem’s estranged father Marshall died aged 67.
