Who Gets To Claim Eminem, Michigan OR Missouri?

Eminem is synonymous with Detroit. That's just how it is!

We Michiganders feel a connection to the 8 Mile star who was born in  St. Joseph. And no, I'm not talking about St. Joseph, Michigan.

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I'm talking about St. Joseph, Missouri!

Show-Me-State

I didn't learn this bizarre fact until I moved out of Michigan and down to Missouri. Of course I couldn't help but boast and brag claiming Eminem as one of our own, but to my surprise I was met with the exact same response!

Marshall Mathers (Eminem) was born in St. Joseph, Missouri in October 1972. Born to a teen mom, Eminem's childhood was full of instability. Throughout his early years his family made multiple moves across Missouri from St. Joseph, to Savannah, to the Kansas City- area.

Wait, does that mean Em should actually be a Chiefs fan?!

Move to The Mitten

The family shuffled between both Missouri and suburban Detroit for a time before eventually settling on the eastside of Detroit when Em was just 12 years old.

Although he'd always had an interest in rap it wasn't until Em was 14 years old that he began to participate in rap battles and open mics at the various clubs along 7 Mile Road.

At first he went by the name "M&M" but that eventually evolved into the "Eminem" we know and love today. It wasn't until Eminem recorded his Slim Shady EP that he got his big break-- and the rest is pretty much history!

Missouri v. Michigan

Although he was born in Missouri, it seems that Eminem spent his most crucial and pivotal years here in The Mitten. That's got to count for something, right? Do you think Em's got fond memories of Missouri?

If you ask the man himself, I wonder where would Eminem say he's from?