Eminem is a rap artist.
Bad Meets Evil is an American hip hop duo composed of Detroit-based rappers , Royce da 5 ' 9 '' ( Bad ) and Eminem ( Evil ) . Marshall Bruce Mathers III ( born October 17 , 1972 ) , known professionally as Eminem ( often stylized as EMINƎM ) , is an American rapper , record producer , and actor . His next two releases , 2000 's The Marshall Mathers LP and 2002 's The Eminem Show , were worldwide successes , with each being certified diamond in U.S. sales , and both winning Best Rap Album Grammy Awards -- making Eminem the first artist to win the award for three consecutive LPs . Eminem 's eighth album , 2013 's The Marshall Mathers LP 2 , won two Grammy Awards , including Best Rap Album ; it expanded his record for the most wins in that category and his Grammy total to 15 . In November 2002 , he starred in the hip hop film 8 Mile , which won the Academy Award for Best Original Song , for `` Lose Yourself '' , becoming the first rap artist to win the award .