It’s no secret Eminem and his mother Debbie Nelson had a tumultuous relationship, which was thoroughly documented between his song lyrics and her tell-all memoir.

Grammy-winning rapper Eminem’s mother, Debbie Nelson, passed away from advanced lung cancer at 69. The two had reportedly been estranged for years, though he continued to support her financially while she cheered him on in his career from afar.

It’s no secret the two had a tumultuous relationship, which was thoroughly documented between Eminem’s song lyrics and Debbie’s tell-all memoir.

The 51-year-old rapper accused his mother of neglect and abuse in a number of his songs like Cleanin’ Out My Closet and My Name Is. At one point, she sued him for defamation of character over claims he made about her in his lyrics.

Eminem, real name Marshall Mathers, was born in 1972 when his mother was just 18 years old. After his father left, the pair moved around from place to place, rarely staying in one house for more than a year until eventually settling in a working-class neighborhood in Detroit.

The 51-year-old rapper often wrote about his relationship with his mother in his song lyrics
Eminem rose to fame after the release of The Slim Shady LP in February 1999, which included the hit song My Name Is…, which contained lyrics that accused his mother of being a drug addict: “I just found out my mom does more dope than I do / I told her I’d grow up to be a famous rapper / make a record about doin’ drugs and name it after her”

Later that year, Debbie filed an $11 million defamation lawsuit against her son over the lyrics. The lawsuit was settled in 2001 for $25,000, of which she only received $1,600 after legal fees. The hip-hop star addressed the court case in his 2002 song Without Me, rapping: “I just settled all my lawsuits (f— you Debbie!)”

The rapper’s lawyer Paul Rosenberg commented: “Eminem’s life is reflected in his music. Everything he has said can be verified as true,” claiming that the lawsuit “is merely the result of a lifelong strained relationship between him and mother.”

Despite being sued by his mother, Eminem revealed more details about their strained relationship and the abuse he suffered as a child in the 2002 song Cleanin’ Out My Closet. He raps: “But put yourself in my position, just try to envision / Witnessin’ your mama poppin’ prescription pills in the kitchen / B—–n’ that someone’s always goin’ through her purse and s—‘s missin’ / Goin’ through public housing systems, victim of Münchausen’s Syndrome / My whole life I was made to believe I was sick when I wasn’t”

He also wrote: “And Hailie’s gettin’ so big now, you should see her, she’s beautiful / But you’ll never see her, she won’t even be at your funeral (Ha-ha!)”

In 2008, Debbie penned a tell-all memoir titled My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem, in which she attempted to “set the record straight” about her son’s claims that she was abusive and neglectful throughout his childhood.

A year later, in the 2009 song My Mom from his album Relapse, the hitmaker claimed his mother was addicted to Valium, going as far to accuse her of putting it in his food when he was a child: “The water that I drank, f—–‘ peas in my plate / she sprinkled just enough of it to season my steak.”

In his 2013 song Headlights, Eminem reveals that they had been estranged for years, and offers an apology to his mother for the song Cleanin’ Out My Closet. He penned: “That song I no longer play at shows / And I cringe every time it’s on the radio.” Despite the tribute, it appears that they remained estranged at the time of her death.

In 2022, she posted a video congratulating him for his induction to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. She said: “Marshall, I want to say, I could not let this day go by without congratulating you on your induction into the Hall of Fame. I love you very much. I knew you’d get there. It’s been a long ride. I’m very, very proud of you.”

It does not seem that Debbie was in attendance at granddaughter Hailie’s wedding last May, and it has been reported that he did not visit her in the hospital after her terminal lung cancer diagnosis in September.

Eminem’s relationship with his mother Debbie was turbulent and strained, with their estrangement spanning the last 25 years.