Eminem files for divorce again after three months

CHICAGO, Apr 6 (Reuters) Rapper Eminem has filed for divorce for a second time from Kimberly Mathers, less than three months after the couple remarried.

The Detroit rapper, whose real name is Marshall Mathers III, filed divorce papers in Macomb County, Michigan, in the latest twist to the couple's turbulent relationship, his publicist said yesterday..

The high school sweethearts divorced in October 2001 after a two-year marriage, memorialised in his 2000 hit ''Kim,'' a graphic rap fantasy about her death. They engaged in a bitter custody fight over daughter Hailie, now 10.

In January, the hip-hop superstar, 33, announced on a Detroit radio station that he and Kim, 31, had reconciled. They remarried in a January 14 ceremony attended by fellow hip-hop artists, including 50 Cent.

''I can confirm the divorce papers have been filed,'' publicist Dennis Dennehy of Interscope-Geffen Records said. ''Beyond that we have no comment.'' Eminem has denied he plans to retire but suggested he would take a break from recording and performing.

''He's trying to figure that out himself,'' Dennehy said of Eminem's career plans.

His greatest hits collection, ''Curtain Call,'' was released in December. The multiple Grammy-winning rapper won an Oscar in 2003 for the song ''Lose Yourself'' from his movie ''8 Mile.'' REUTERS SHB ND0902