Eminem was on the toilet when he came up with his nickname Slim Shady.

The "Lose Yourself" rapper finds his bathroom an inspiring place where he comes up with a lot of ideas.

He said: "I was sitting on the toilet and a lot of good material came out of that. This name popped into my head. I was kind of skinny and I thought maybe it should be something slim.

"And then for some reason Slim Shady popped into my mind and I just thought of 20 things to rhyme with it.

"I just thought, 'This is it'. I went back in the room and just kept writing."

Eminem - whose memoirs The Way I Am go on sale today (21.10.08) - has also revealed the point when he decided it was time to turn his life around.

The hip-hop star - real name Marshall Mathers - pleaded guilty to carrying a concealed weapon during a fight outside a nightclub and was sentenced to one year's probation and community service in June 2001.

He added: "I think I made a decision when I was sitting in the back of the cop car.

"But when I got through it, I was like, 'I can't act like an idiot anymore. I got kids.' "

(China Daily/Agencies October 22, 2008)