Exploration 6- Holly Galvin

        Eminem is an artist that has had an influence on me and many other around the world. Eminem is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, actor and record executive. He is a father and has made a name for himself. He is one of the most controversial and best-selling artists of the early 21st century. His mother couldn't hold onto a job for longer than a few months so they moved a lot and Eminem moved schools two to three times a year. He always kept to himself and was beat up in the bathrooms at school. He failed out of 9th grade 3 different times and eventually dropped out of school at the age of 17. He explains in his biography that he was always good at English no matter how bad he was at school he was always strong in English. He said he would study the dictionary and he liked to have a large vocabulary stored in his brain. He eventually joined the Detroit rap scene and earned respect from all of the black male rappers that were relevant in the Detroit underground rap scene. Most of the rappers at this time were black and he was this pale white boy with blue eyes so this was huge for him to be one of the most respected rappers in Detroit. Eminem took off from there and started writing and rapping his own songs. Dr. Dre discovered his song The Slim Shady EP. Dre was so impressed that he signed him to his inter scope Records label.
        In 2010 Eminem released his album Recovery which explained his struggles with drug addiction and how he overcame his addictions. The song that inspires me the most from this album is Not Afraid. Eminem explains how he is not afraid to take a stand against drugs and alcohol and he can help anyone else who is going through the same struggle. He explains how he wanted to lighten up his music and be more vulnerable with the subject at hand. He wanted to help people get through the struggles he went through by writing and rapping about it in his music. Eminem is just one of the rappers/artists that got addicted to drugs and he really set a great example that it doesn't have to ruin your life or your career and he made the absolute best out of the situation.
        Eminem is hard to compare to any other other rappers from his time because he was one of the only white male rappers from that era. Eminem is an inspiration to anyone who comes from absolutely nothing because he proved that you can make a name for yourself with hard work and dedication. He was a high school drop out, his family was not supportive, and he faced drug and alcohol addiction but despite all of the terrible things that happened in his life he is extremely successful.
Link to biography about Eminem: https://www.biography.com/people/eminem-9542093

Link to Not Afraid:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5-yKhDd64s

Eminem, he looks different than any other male rapper from the time. 

This is Eminem with Dr Dre, the man who discovered him and helped him become so successful