Eminem is a household name in the world of rap, but some fans are only just discovering the origin of his stage name. The American rapper and music producer has been instrumental in bringing hip hop to Middle America and breaking down racial barriers for white rappers.
His chart-topping hits on the US Billboard Hot 100 include The Real Slim Shady, Lose Yourself, Without Me, Love the Way You Lie, Not Afraid, The Monster, Godzilla and, most recently, Houdini.The rapper, now 51, first entered the mainstream in 1999 with his major-label debut album The Slim Shady LP. Since then, he’s been universally known as Eminem, a name derived from his real name, Marshall Mathers.
However, fans have recently begun to question the origins of his stage name, with one Reddit user asking: “Why did he call himself Eminem? Does anyone know why he called himself that? I have been listening to him for quite a long time but I never understood why he chose Eminem instead of something like Slim Shady.”
As it turns out, the name Eminem dates back to his childhood when he and his high school friend, Mike Ruby, adopted the names Manix and M&M. The name M&M, short for Marshall Mathers, later evolved into Eminem. Commenting on this revelation, some users shared their shock having not realised the connection sooner. One user claimed: “He actually used to label his material M&M but he changed it when it started to takes himself more seriously and garner attention to avoid an obvious lawsuit.”
A third user said: “I saw an interview with someone that knew him when he was younger and he actually came up with that when he was messing around with M&M’s and took two of them and put them together, and asked the guy (the guy was someone’s parent or something) what does it say, and he said M&M and then Eminem went yeah, that’s me.”
