Their music might not seem to have much in common, but British singer Ed Sheeran has revealed singing along to US rapper Eminem’s songs as a 10-year-old helped him overcome a stuttering problem.

Sheeran spoke at the American Institute for Stuttering’s Free Voices Changing Lives Benefit Gala in New York earlier this week, reported MTV .

He revealed his stutter made him feel like a “very, very weird child” - but salvation came in the most unexpected form.

When he received a copy of Eminem’s album The Marshal Mathers LP, he listened to it religiously until he could sing every word.

“I learned every word of it, back to front, when I was 10. He raps very fast, and very melodically, and very percussively, and it helped me get rid of the stutter,” he said.

The 24-year-old singer also encouraged young people who have a stutter to embrace their difference.

“Just be yourself – embrace your quirks,” he said.

In April last year, Australian singer Megan Washington revealed she had struggled with a stuttering problem since childhood.

The musician detailed her struggle in a speech at a TedxSydney event at the Sydney Opera House.