Handwritten letter from Eminem to Tupac's mother resurfaces

WASHINGTON, July 16 (UPI) -- In a letter written to Tupac Shakur's mother, rapper Eminem gets personal, sharing with the grieving parent -- in very neat handwriting -- that her son inspired his entire career.

The letter, which was posted to Imgur by a fan and resurfaced on Reddit this week, included a skillful pen drawing of Tupac, which the famed rapper apologized for due to its "sloppiness."

"I could've done a little better if I had the right pencils," Eminem, whose real name is Marshall Bruce Mathers III, wrote.

"Anyways, thank you for always being so kind to me," he said. "You will always be in my heart, my thoughts, and my prayers."

Mathers continued to explain the extent to which the woman's son inspired him, calling Tupac "the true definition of a soldier."

"You have no idea how much your son and his music has inspired, not only the 'Hip Hop' wold, but, speaking for myself, has inspired my whole career," he said. "When I was feeling at my 'worst,' (before fame, before Dre) I knew I could put that 'Tupac' tape in and suddenly, things weren't that bad."

Both Mather's letter and the drawing appear on display at the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center of Art in Georgia, as well as in the 2008 collection of stories Tupac Remembered.