Eminem- A Hero
"Look, if you had one shot, one opportunity, to seize everything you have ever wanted in one moment, would you capture it or just let it slip?"- Eminem, Loose Yourself. Who would have known a boy growing up with a rough childhood and being a 9th grade dropout would be one of the most successful, controversial, and inspirational rappers and people of all time?: Eminem. Marshal Bruce Mathers III, or Eminem, was born on October 17, 1974. As a kid, he had a hard, rough childhood. Marshal never knew his dad, and his mom was both verbally and physically abusive. On top of that, he constantly moved schools, getting him bullied and picked on all the time. Also, he was never really that "smart". After failing the 9th grade three times, he dropped out of high school. However, he became the first rapper since the Beastie Boys to garner both sales and critical respect. At one point in his life, he also became an actor, portraying Jimmy "B-Rabbit" Smith, a very similar character to Eminem himself, in the movie 8 Mile. He also accomplished many other things, such as getting signed onto Interscope Records, and receiving the first Oscar ever awarded to a rap song. To me, a hero must possess endurance, meaning that the hero must be able to pull through whatever bad things are put on him; he must be inspiring, must make a difference in the world or in their life, and also must be a hard worker. Marshal Bruce Mathers III, or most commonly known as Eminem or Slim Shady, inspired many people through his deep, rapid-fire lyrics to push aside all your demons, your hardships in life, and to seize your chance to make a difference in the world ad to prove everybody who ever doubted you wrong.
Eminem is a very inspiring hero, and he inspired not only me, but also may other people, to keep going with our lives, to push aside all of our demons and our hardships; and to go over your life's obstacles and if necessary, hand-craft your life. Eminem had a rough childhood growing up. Fatherless and with an abusive, drug-addicted mother, Eminem's life wasn't life wasn't handed to him on a silver platter. So as a kid, Eminem wasn't expected to get very far in life. "He never knew his father, Marshal Mathers Jr., who abandoned the family when Eminem was still and infant and rebuffed all of his son's many attempts to contact him during his childhood. As a result, Eminem was raised by his mother, Deborah Mathers. She never managed to hold down a job for more than several months at a time, so they moved frequently between Missouri and Detroit, Michigan, spending large chunks of time in public housing projects. 'I would change schools two, three times a year', Eminem later recalled. "That was probably the roughest part about it all.'" -Eminem Biography. Even though he was raised without a father, and moved constantly, he pushed those hardships aside and made a name for his own. Also, without much support from his family, making king a livable life for himself and a family of his own, and as well as a successful job as a rapper was no walk in the park. That is what makes him so inspiring. He came from nothing, yet ended up with everything. And by being white, Eminem didn't really "fit in" into the rap world; which was dominantly a black crowd. "The local hip-hop community did not take to him, but he ignored the criticism and tirelessly promoted himself through radio stations and freestyle competitions across the country." -Gale Biography in Context. Despite not fitting in the rap crowd, Eminem still pushed forward and followed his passion of rapping, making an inspirational figure for people who want to follow their dream, but can't because people would always push them down when they tried. Also, by following his passion and becoming a successful white rapper, he inspires me and other people to keep on going with life, no matter how hard it seems. All in all, despite a very hard and rough childhood, Eminem is an inspiration to many people and inspires us to take whatever we have, big or small, and turn it into something life, or maybe even world-changing.
Throughout Eminem's life, nothing was ever handed to him; he had to work very hard for what he wanted, which wasn't easy, considering where he came from. Thanks to Eminem's hard work, he opened up a gateway and sent a message to people that you can do whatever you want, just as long as you put your mind into it. "Eminem was the first white rapper to garner both sales and critical respect." -Eminem Biography. This shows that due to Eminem's hard work, he opened up many doors for himself and other unrecognized rappers. He also showed them to follow their dreams and also to do things without fear. Since Eminem was the first white rapper since the Beastie Boys to garner both sales and critical respect, he became a hero to rappers, because he helped expose rap to the world. With further hard work, he achieved the dream of many rappers out there; for their craft to be known and to win an award. "On March 23, 2003, the Academy Awards were held in Los Angeles. Nominees for the Best Original Song were announced. Along with "Lose Yourself" from *mile, the nominees included "The Hands That Built America" from the historical drama Gangs of New York, "Father and Daughter" from the animated feature The Wild Thornberrys Movie, "Burn it Blue" from the biopic Frida, and "I Move On" from the musical Chicago. And the winner was... "Lose Yourself"!" -Hip-Hop: Eminem, page 13. Again, Eminem became a hero to many rappers out there, because he broke many barriers, and made the first rap song, "Lose Yourself", ever, to win an Oscar. Eminem demonstrates that no obstacle is too high or difficult, and anything is possible, making him a hero to many. In conclusion, Eminem is an inspirational figure who worked hard to craft his life that made a huge difference in this world.
In Eminem's childhood, he faced many difficulties, including dropping out of the 9th grade. Since he dropped out, people expected that he wouldn't get very far in life. Also, being a white rapper is almost impossible, since he didn't really fit in the dominantly black "rap game". Therefore people always judged him and thought that his lyrics aren't good enough. "The local hip-hop community did not take to him, but he ignored the criticism and tirelessly promoted himself through radio stations and freestyle competitions across the country." -Gale Biography in Context. Despite not fitting in, Eminem still pushed forward, expressed his talent and skill in rapping, and made sure that his lyrics would awe everybody, even if he was white. He sends out a message to everybody that nothing is impossible, no matter what people think about you. As a kid, people never expected to get very far in life, especially since he dropped out and failed 9th grade three times. "He lived in poverty as a child, raised by his mother. They moved to Detroit when he was 12. After failing the ninth grade three times, he dropped out of school." - Worldbook Online. This shows that people expected Eminem to be worthless, nothing special. But instead, he proved them all wrong and grew up to be a famous and successful rapper. Even though many people doubted him, Eminem became a phoenix and rose out of the ashes of doubt that people put on him and became successful and famous.
Marshal Bruce Mathers III, or Eminem truly is a hero to many people out there. He always inspired people to work with what they have to reach their dreams and fulfill their passion, and to always push through the hard times no matter what. He is also an inspiration to many rappers out there, winning many awards and being one of the best rappers in the world, despite being white. Eminem is an inspiration because he showed people that nothing is impossible, and it doesn't matter where you came from, or what you have, it just matters who you are, and that if you have a bad and hard life, you have the ability to change your life and craft it to be a better one. He also showed people that all of us have the ability to make a difference in the world, and for Eminem, it was to make rap music more known, and to win the first Oscar to be ever awarded to a rap song. Eminem is always pushing forward, and never giving up. He paves a path that many of us have the choice to follow, and that he will always push through everything that gets in his way. In the end, some people may only think of him as just another well known rapper. But to me, he is an inspirational person that is known for his deep, meaningful and touching lyrics. Eminem is my hero.
Page created on 1/10/2013 12:00:00 AM
Last edited 1/10/2013 12:00:00 AM