Who Was Eminem's Mom? All About Debbie Nelson

Eminem’s mom, Debbie Nelson, celebrated her son’s achievements for just two years before she died at the age of 69.

The grandmother died on December 2 after being diagnosed with lung cancer. As a child, Nelson was the oldest of five children. Her parents married young (Betty Nelson married Bob Nelson at 14 and had Debbie at 15) and relied heavily on Nelson to help support the family. By age 11, Nelson went out on his own to collect “surplus food” and was in charge of “keeping house, looking after my brothers, cooking and cleaning,” she wrote in her memoir. My son Marshall, my son Eminem.

Like her mother, Nelson became a first-time mother at an early age and welcomed her son when she was 18. Eminem was born Marshall Bruce Mathers III on October 17, 1972 in Saint Joseph, Mo.

Throughout the rapper’s decades-long career, the mother-son duo maintained a rocky relationship. However, things came to a head when Eminem criticized Nelson in his 2002 song “Cleanin’ Out My Closet.” The lyrics led to Nelson filing an $11 million defamation lawsuit against his son.

Then in 2013, Eminem released “Headlights,” which was interpreted as a sincere and public apology to Nelson. “I went in headfirst, never thinking about who what I said hurt/my mom probably got the worst of it,” he said.

Elsewhere in the song, he says, “And I’m mad that I didn’t get a chance to thank you for being my mom and dad/So mom, please accept this as the confession I wrote on this plane.”

In an interview with The voice of the villageNelson touched on the possibility of a reconciliation with Eminem.

“I will never give up on my children. I will not give up on anyone,” she told the newspaper. “There is hope for everyone. It’s really a matter of swallowing your pride. It’s like a cashed check. It’s over, it’s over. You have to move on.”

From her upbringing to her relationship with the artist, here’s everything you need to know about Eminem’s mother, Debbie Nelson.

She was born in a military base

Eminem’s mother Debbie Mathers during a portrait session outside her home in September 2005 in Detroit, Michigan.

Mark Weiss/Getty

Nelson opened up about her tumultuous upbringing in her 2008 memoir My son Marshall, my son Eminem. Her father was in the Air Force and her mother worked as a bartender at a dance club. Nelson was born in 1955 on an army base in Kansas, although her family – including her two younger brothers – later settled in Saint Joseph, Mo.

Nelson said she grew up in a “big dysfunctional family.” Her parents divorced in 1964 when her mother had a daughter with another man. Nelson wrote that her relationship with her father became strained after he remarried and adopted his wife’s two children, one of whom shared her name.

“One of them was called Debbie, just like me. That broke my heart – she revealed. “That meant there were two Debbie Nelsons, and he obviously loved his adopted daughter more than me. He completely turned his back on us, acting like we didn’t exist.”

In her memoir, Nelson recalled how she and her siblings began sleeping on the porch to escape their stepfather’s allegedly abusive behavior. In the end, she wrote that she realized that her only way out was to run away and get married.

She entered into her first marriage at the age of 16

Debbie Mathers during a portrait session outside her home in September 2005 in Detroit, Michigan.

Mark Weiss/Getty

Nelson married her high school sweetheart, Marshall Bruce Mathers, on September 20, 1970. The couple hung out in the same group of friends, although their relationship was initially strictly platonic.

“Romantically, I thought he was way out of my league,” Nelson revealed in her memoir.

“But after he saved me from my stepfather, we started talking about our hopes and dreams for the future,” she continued. “I told him that every night I pray for a better life. All I ever wanted was a loving husband, a nice home and lots of kids. Bruce felt the same.”

The couple finally went their separate ways after Eminem’s birth.

She almost died giving birth to Eminem

72 hours after giving birth, Nelson began experiencing seizures and blackouts as a result of toxicoma blood poisoning. She fell into a coma shortly after giving birth to her first child, Marshall Bruce Mathers III, and did not wake up until “a few days” later.

“The labor pains started in earnest,” she wrote My son Marshall, my son Eminem. “I remember holding the nurse’s hand and counting the dots on the ceiling to take my mind off the contractions.”

Nelson said she was not offered an emergency C-section and was told by a nurse that she and the baby “will die if you don’t push.” She recalled waking up in a recovery room with a priest praying over her.

Eminem was born on October 17, 1972 and weighed 5 lbs, 2 oz. He was named after his paternal grandfather.

“From the moment he was born, my son Marshall was a wonderful actor. He knew exactly how to look at me from under his long dark lashes and put on a show,” Nelson wrote.

She welcomed her second son in 1986

Debbie Nelson’s son Nathan “Nate” Mathers.

Nathan Mathers Instagram

Eminem was 13 years old when he was promoted to big brother. At the time, Nelson was dating a man named Fred Sarma Jr., who also served as a father figure to Eminem, she wrote in her book.

Nathan Samra-Mathers was born on February 3, 1986, but by then his father, Fred, was no longer in the story.

“Nathan never understood why Fred was so nice to Marshall, but he didn’t want to meet him. I couldn’t explain it to him either. I was also hurt that Fred left us,” Nelson wrote.

Like his big brother, Nathan tried his hand in the music industry. He and his wife got married in 2018 and share three children. Nathan was also at Super Bowl LVI 2022 to watch Eminem’s halftime performance.

She sued Eminem for defamation

Eminem backstage during the 52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards in January 2010 in Los Angeles, California. ; Eminem’s mother Debbie Mathers during a portrait session outside her home in September 2005 in Detroit, Michigan.

Christopher Polk/Getty; Mark Weiss/Getty

The relationship between Eminem and his mother has weathered many storms over the years, including in 1999 when she sued her son for defamation over lyrics on his debut album, Slim Shady LP.

ABC News reported that the judge ruled in her favor, but that Nelson only received $25,000 of the $11 million she was seeking. In the end, she was only entitled to about $1,600 after legal fees.

She celebrated Eminem from afar

Debbie Mathers holds a poster with a handwritten message during a portrait at her home in September 2005 in Detroit, Michigan.

Mark Weiss/Getty

Although Nelson wasn’t physically present for her son’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022, she took a moment to publicly celebrate his career milestone. In a video posted on X (formerly Twitter), Nelson shared how proud she is of her first-born son and his great achievement.

“Marshall, I want to say that I couldn’t let this day go by without congratulating you on your induction into the Hall of Fame,” she said in the clip, which has since been deleted. “I love you so much. I knew you’d make it. It’s been a long ride. I’m very, very proud of you.”

Nelson also briefly greeted Eminem’s daughter Hailie and applauded her on the success of her podcast. “God bless you guys. I love you a lot – she concluded.

She had six grandchildren

Nathan Mathers and his family.

Nathan Mathers Instagram

Between her two sons, Nelson was a grandmother to six children. Eminem has three children with ex-wife Kim Scott: Hailie Jade Scott, Alaina Scott and Stevie Laine Scott.

The rapper welcomed his daughter Hailie on December 25, 1995 in Detroit. In the early 2000s, he legally adopted his niece, Alaina, after the death of her biological mother (Kim’s sister, Dawn Scott). Eminem legally adopted Stevie, whom Kim welcomed between her two marriages to Eminem, in 2005.

Meanwhile, Nathan is also a father of three. He shares a daughter and two sons with his wife.

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Source: HIS Education