Former Eminem employee pleads guilty to selling rapper’s unreleased music
A former employee of Eminem has pleaded guilty in Michigan to illegally copying and selling the rapper’s unreleased music for about $50,000, according to federal prosecutors. The files later appeared online and were accessed more than eight million times.
Joseph Strange, 48, of Holly, Michigan, pleaded guilty on Thursday to criminal copyright infringement in the Eastern District of Michigan, according to the U.S. Justice Department.
Strange worked for Eminem, whose real name is Marshall Mathers, from approximately 2007 until 2021. During that time, he helped set up and operate a computer system that stored the rapper’s music at a studio in Ferndale, Michigan.
The job gave him access to password-protected hard drives containing music that was still being developed and was not intended for public release. According to court documents, the suspect copied at least 10 audio files from the drives without authorization.
Between July and August 2024, the suspect sold and transmitted at least 10 files to buyers over the internet for approximately $50,000. Eminem did not know about or authorize the sales.
The files were subsequently released online and made available on public streaming platforms without the rapper’s permission. Data from several streaming providers showed that files had been accessed more than eight million times by November 2025.
Prosecutors said no commercial release of the material was imminent or certain, but professional work had gone into preparing some of the music for a possible release, including studio mastering in some cases. The DOJ estimated the copyright infringement amount at $750,000 or more.
“Joseph Strange abused a position of trust to unlawfully copy and sell unreleased music belonging to Eminem, profiting from works that were not yet authorized for public distribution,” Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva said.
The suspect is scheduled to be sentenced on January 27, 2027, and faces up to five years in prison.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
