How long did Joseph Strange work for Eminem? Rapper’s former employee charged with selling unreleased music 

A culprit has been charged with leaking the music of legendary rapper and music producer, Eminem, whose real name is Marshall Mathers. The FBI’s Detroit Bureau’s investigation led to the identification of Joseph Strange as the source behind the January 2025 leak of over 25 songs of Eminem among other artistic material attributed to the rapper dated from 1999 to 2018, according to Variety.

Joseph Strange was an ex-employee of the rapper’s Ferndale, Michigan-based recording studio, Effigy. As per the Detroit Free Press, Strange worked as an audio engineer at Effigy for around 14 years from 2007 to 2021. According to the news outlet, Strange, whose brother Mike still works at Effigy, was dismissed from his position in 2021.

The January 2025 leak of Eminem’s music caused a furor in the rap industry and among the artist’s fans. Among the leaked music was a track presumed to be produced in the past, titled, “Smack You,” which was a diss track aimed at the rapper's contemporaries, Ja Rule and Suge Knight. At the time, XXL noted that Eminem’s spokesperson Dennis Dennehy had reached out to the news outlet to give a statement on the leaks. Dennehy said,

"These leaked songs were studio efforts never meant for public consumption... demos, experiments and ideas that are dated and not relevant so many years later. The latest in a line of unfinished material released against artists’ will and without their permission.”

---

What led the FBI to Joseph Strange as the source behind the leak of Eminem’s music?

As per the Detroit Free Press, the FBI made forward strides in the copyright infringement case when Eminem and his mentor and collaborator Dr. Dre’s associate Frewdwreck wrote a post on X in January. According to Detroit Free Press, the post, which was not deleted, addressed the then-unknown culprit as a “criminal” behind the leak and threatened him with dire consequences.

According to the same news report, Fredwreck received a response to the post from an Eminem fan who led the FBI to a Canadian national with the pseudonym ‘Doja Rat,’ who alongside other fans, allegedly bought the artistic material from Strange in exchange for $50,000 in bitcoin.

According to Variety, the FBI’s January 28 search of Strange’s home revealed hard drives of Eminem’s music alongside financial documents revealing the payments made to Strange in exchange for the music.

In a statement provided to the Detroit Free Press on March 19, Eminem’s representative said,

"Eminem and his team are very appreciative of the efforts by the FBI Detroit bureau for its thorough investigation”

The statement also recognized the damage done by the leak, stating,

“The significant damage caused by a trusted employee to Eminem's artistic legacy and creative integrity cannot be overstated, let alone the enormous financial losses incurred by the many creators and collaborators that deserve protection for their decades of work…We will continue to take any and all steps necessary to protect Eminem's art and will stop at nothing to do so.”

Joseph Strange has been charged with copyright infringement and transporting stolen goods over state lines, according to Variety.

Amid the uncovering of the alleged source behind the leak of Eminem’s music, the rapper’s fans will be looking forward to what’s next from the iconic artist. Eminem’s most recent offering was a track that he worked on for longtime collaborator Snoop Dogg’s album, Missionary, whichwas released in 2024.