Eminem: Rapper’s mother dies at 69

Debbie Nelson, the mother of rap icon Eminem (52), has died at the age of 69. This was reported citing unnamed sources. A spokesman for Eminem announced that Nelson had passed away.

The rapper’s mother died on Monday evening, December 2nd in St. Joseph, Missouri, as a result of complications related to lung cancer. Her illness was only reported in September by several media outlets, including in an online article. Even then, it was written, with reference to anonymous sources, that Nelson supposedly did not have long to live.

The relationship between Eminem and his mother, who was only 17 when he was born, was said to be strained throughout his life. The musician publicly dealt with his difficult childhood early in his career in songs like “Cleanin’ Out My Closet” and accused her of drug abuse, among other things. In 1999, Debbie Nelson sued her son for defamation. In 2007, she published her memoir, My Son Marshall, My Son Eminem, in which she gave her side of the story. In the book she also wrote about breast cancer.

In recent years there have apparently been advances between Marshall Mathers, Eminem’s real name, and his mother. In the song “Headlights,” the rapper showed remorse for his rants against her. Upon his induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame two years ago, Nelson publicly congratulated her son on X (formerly Twitter). However, an insider told InTouch in September as part of the lung cancer report that Eminem had allegedly not spoken to his mother in “years.”