Eminem and his wife signed a pre-nuptial agreement

Eminem, real name Marshall Mathers III, first married his high school sweetheart Kimberly Scott in 1999.

But he fantasised about her death in his 2000 hit Kim and their first marriage ended the following year.

They remarried on 14 January but court papers filed by the rapper in Michigan said there had been "a breakdown in the marriage relationship".

"The objects of matrimony have been destroyed and there remains no reasonable likelihood that the marriage can be preserved," it added.

The couple were both brought up in the same Detroit suburb

The couple signed a pre-nuptial agreement a week before their wedding in Rochester, Michigan, the documents said - but the details were not revealed.

Eminem is seeking joint custody of their 10-year-old daughter Hailie Jade Scott, the papers also said.

Kim Mathers' lawyer Michael J Smith said the move came as "somewhat of a surprise".

"But we have to deal with it, and we will deal with it," he said. "I was at their wedding. It's very unfortunate that he filed for divorce."

Eminem, 33, and his 31-year-old wife were both brought up along the Eight Mile Road in the suburbs of Detroit.

In 2000, Kimberly attempted suicide and sued the rapper for defamation after he depicted her violent death in his song Kim.

The couple later settled the defamation case out of court.

He has since been accused of pulling a gun on a man who was said to have kissed his wife, while Kimberly has spent time in jail for using cocaine.

Retirement

In August, Eminem called off his European tour because of "exhaustion" before being treated in hospital for drug dependency.

The rapper's greatest hits album Curtain Call sold 5.5 million copies around the world in 2005.

But he recently admitted he was considering retirement from the music business.

"I'm at a point in my life right now where I feel like I don't know where my career is going," he said.