Inside Eminem’s rocky relationship with mum Debbie Nelson…$10m battle over drugs rap to song he vowed never to perform

HIS hit raps have always been inspired by his tragic life - and the latest blow for Eminem could mean more heartbreaking lyrics to come.

The rapper's mum, Debbie Nelson, has died aged 69 following a battle with advanced lung cancer.

The mum-of-two passed away in St. Joseph, Missouri, according to TMZ.

The rapper, 51, has yet to comment on his mum’s death publicly.

Eminem - real name Marshall Mathers - was estranged from her for years following various legal battles.

He even wrote about their strained relationship in his lyrics, infamously shouting “F**k you Debbie” in his hit song Without Me.

But they reconciled following her breast cancer diagnosis in 2010, and he vowed to stop performing certain songs about her.

We take a look inside their relationship and all his raps she inspired - not always in a good way…

Debbie got pregnant with Eminem when she was 18 and nearly died during the 72-hour labour with him, as a result of toxicoma blood poisoning. 

She went into a coma soon after giving birth to Marshall and didn't wake until “several days” later.

The rapper's father abandoned him soon after.

Accused mum of drugs

Eminem and Debbie moved around from Kansas City to Detroit, rarely staying in a house for more than a year or two and struggling financially.

According to Eminem, his mother was so desperate for money she would place false accusations against organisations in order to receive money from them.

The musician also accused his mum of doing drugs in his 1999 track My Name Is.

He rapped: "I just found out my mum 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."

Debbie sued him later that year in a $10million defamation lawsuit, claiming he was slandering her on The Slim Shady LP.

At the time, Eminem's lawyer Paul Rosenberg said: "Eminem’s life is reflected in his music. Everything he has said can be verified as true.

"Truth is an absolute defense to a claim of defamation. This lawsuit does not come as a surprise to Eminem. His mother has been threatening to sue him since the success of his single 'My Name Is…'

"It is merely the result of a lifelong strained relationship between him and mother. Regardless, it is still painful to be sued by your mother and therefore the lawsuit will only be dealt with through legal channels."

In 2001, Debbie received a $25,000 settlement, but $23,354.25 of that went to her lawyer.

'Addicted to Valium'

The following year, in his  track Cleanin' Out My Closet, Eminem claimed Debbie suffers from Münchausen syndrome by proxy - a mental health problem in which a caregiver makes up or causes an illness or injury to the person they're caring for.

He rapped: "Going through public housing systems, victim of Munchhausen’s Syndrome / My whole life I was made to believe I was sick when I wasn’t ‘til I grew up, now I blew up."

And in the song My Mom, he claimed Debbie was addicted to Valium and would put Valium in Eminem's food when he was a child.

The lyrics included: "The water that I drank, f**kin' peas in my plate, she sprinkled just enough of it to season my steak."

He later claimed this was how he became addicted to Valium.

Debbie denied his claims in interviews and later aimed to set the record straight in her 2008 memoir, My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem.

She wrote: "At first I went along with it for Marshall's sake - if I made one mistake as a mother, it was giving in to my eldest son's every whim.

"He never knew his father, and I did all I could to make up for it. I wasn't happy when he made up a whole new life for himself - what mother wants to be known as a pill-popping alcoholic who lives on welfare?

"To tell the truth, I was heartbroken. The lies started coming thick and fast - and not just from Marshall. I think he's forgotten the good times we had, and this book is my way of setting the record straight."

Although the rapper had trashed his mom in his songs in the past and has been outspoken about their conflicts, the pair came together to shoot the music video for it.

Years later, in 2010, Debbie was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Despite providing financial support to his mum, Eminem hadn’t communicated with her or any other family members for many years.

"People around her aren't even sure if Eminem is even aware of what is happening to his mother," a source told In Touch Weekly at the time. "He's good to his mum. He makes sure he takes care of her, but they don't really talk.

"It would be good for both of them [to communicate]. This could give them the chance to reconcile."

Moving on

Their strained relationship improved soon after, and Eminem put their feud to bed in his 2013 song Headlights.

In the song, he talked about his love for her, forgiving her and apologising for taking things too far.

He rapped: “But regardless, I don't hate you 'cause, Ma / You're still beautiful to me, 'cause you're my Ma [...] All you did, all you said, you did your best to raise us both /Foster care, that cross you bear, few may be as heavy as yours.” 

He also vowed to never perform Cleanin' Out my Closet again in this song.

The last time he played it was at Leeds Festival in 2013, and he’s admitted he “cringes” whenever he hears it on the radio.

Then, in 2021, Eminem named his hometown restaurant Mom's Spaghetti - in reference to a lyric from his song Lose Yourself.

The following year, as Eminem was inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame, Debbie congratulated her son.

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.”