Eminem’s life of rhyme may be about to end

Is Eminem’s current concert tour his last hurrah as a rap star?

An article in Thursday’s Detroit Free Press, citing colleagues and business associates, suggested that the controversial, million-selling rapper will retire the Eminem persona and concentrate on discovering and producing other artists when the “Anger Management” tour concludes Sept. 17 in Ireland. The show, co-headlined by 50 Cent, plays Hyundai Pavilion in Devore next Saturday.

“Em has definitely gotten to the level where he feels like he’s accomplished everything he can accomplish in rap,” rapper Proof told the Detroit paper. “He wants to kick back and get into the producing thing.”

The comments, some attributed and some anonymous, suggested that a combination of weariness with celebrity, a desire for privacy and the creative restrictions of fans’ expectations have brought the Detroit-based rapper, whose real name is Marshall Mathers III, to a career crossroads. His manager, Paul Rosenberg, didn’t confirm Eminem’s future plans Friday. In an e-mail to The Times, he stated that “Encore,” his current album, “is the close of the first chapter of Eminem the recording artist. To speculate beyond that is just a guess. When he knows what’s next, he will let the world know.”

As long as five years ago, Eminem expressed doubts about a long career in rap. In a 2000 interview with The Times, he said: “There might be an age limit on it, if you know what I mean. I probably eventually will move over into producing.”

If Mathers, 33, hasn’t made a decision, it’s no surprise that change is coming. The title and some of the songs on “Encore” indicate the end of a career phase.