Here, we will begin by listening to some of the arguably “glamourized” narratives of drug use that can be dangerous for impressionable fans. Then, we will move through more vulnerable representations of substance abuse in music — with many of the songs becoming a cry for help rather than a promotion of drug use. Finally, we will listen to music that was created with the intent of documenting the realities and dangers of drug addiction, which it seeks to combat with open and productive conversation. What we haven’t done is reckon with an ascendant crop of pharmaceuticals — some legal, some semi-legal, some illegal — that are now routinely referenced in works of art. From Xanax to Adderall to Percocet to the codeine-cough-syrup concoction “lean,” there’s a medicine cabinet’s worth of drugs that are influencing, inspiring, beguiling, and, in some cases, destroying artists.
Marijuana
Morphine was used during the American Civil War as a surgical anesthetic and was sent home with numerous wounded soldiers for pain relief. Several hundred thousand soldiers were addicted to morphine at the end of the war. These days, prescription drugs seem to be a part of the rapper starter kit.
Fentanyl
Next, we have the “27 club,” celebrity entertainers who died at age 27 of substance abuse. An autopsy showed no trace of any drugs in her stomach but did show a purplish discoloration of the colon. Toxicology studies found a massive amount of pentobarbital and chloral hydrate in her body. It was suggested that the purple colon was a manifestation of an inflammatory response to barbiturates, possibly administered by enema. (She had enemas frequently, as did other Hollywood stars.) Again, following her death, there was a cover-up by the Los Angeles Police Department and the government.
Rappers Who Addressed Their Addictions
- XXL gathered a list of rhymers who recently walked away from their most detrimental vice.
- Toxicology studies found a massive amount of pentobarbital and chloral hydrate in her body.
- On August 4, 1962, at age 36, Marilyn Monroe was found dead in her bedroom in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles.
- “And we dancin’ to a song about our face goin’ numb, But I’ve seen homies turn grey, noses draining blood.” One verse lists a handful of artists who have been lost to varying addictions.
It’s important to note that not all are involved in drug abuse, and many rappers are completely sober. However, artists have openly discussed their experiences with substance abuse in their music and public interviews over time. The reasons behind their strong dependence on alcohol and drugs are diverse. It can include cultural influences, socioeconomic backgrounds, mental health struggles, =https://ecosoberhouse.com/ and the desire to portray a particular image.
Written by Lily Guzman
Insane Clown Posse actually went to court to overturn this, but since the designation was informal, they lost. According to the Daily News, in 1991 he was sentenced to two years of probation and a $1,782 fine — among other conditions — due to a gun charge involving a “parking lot confrontation” with a homeless person. In 2001, 2008, and 2011, he was arrested for assaulting his wife (per Kiss Richmond). The latter two cases led to nothing, but he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in the 2001 case, which led to another probation and court-mandated therapy. In 2013, Gucci Mane was charged for two separate counts of “possessing a firearm as a felon,” and after a plea deal in 2014, spent roughly two years in prison.
Rolling Stone
- The relationship between rappers, alcohol, and drug addiction is a complex and multifaceted issue.
- Also, three packets of prescription drugs for an upcoming tour arrived, and each packet contained secobarbital, ethchlorvynol, diazepam, secobarbital/amobarbital, meperidine, and antidepressants, typical of what he took on tour.
- Monch’s incredible artistry was meant to open a conversation about a number of often under-discussed topics such as PTSD, addiction, and depression.
- Per Biography, he was a drug dealer before he became a well-known rapper.
- To make matters even more dire, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has been solely blamed for making the nation’s drug epidemic “worse,” so reports the American Medical Association.
- Let’s take a look at rappers who have bigger criminal records than you might have realized.
As a society, it is our obligation to do better by the people we have lost and who are still to come in the hip-hop industry. The time for open conversations with our youth, and taking accountability for music content, needs to be now. The relationship between rappers, alcohol, and drug addiction is a complex and multifaceted issue.
The scene ends when his father, played by Ossie Davis, happens upon the scene and shoots “Gator” dead. The most recent entry in Jeezy’s apparent biannual trend of getting arrested came in 2014, when he and members of his entourage were arrested after a search of his tour bus turned up an assault rifle of uncertain origin, per Rolling Stone. However, the authorities later discovered that the rifle was registered to Jeezy’s head of security, who wasn’t in the bus because he had recently been injured in a shooting against Suge Knight.
- More than any other individual rapper Dr. Dre deserves recognition for his role in helping turn the page on the crack epidemic.
- Another artist gone too soon, Mac Miller was candid in his music about his drug usage and battle with addiction.
- I knew I couldn’t have drugs in my life,” Gucci Mane shared with the finance publication Money.
- As a society, it is our obligation to do better by the people we have lost and who are still to come in the hip-hop industry.
- The artist calls out the blind eye that is often turned to music casually depicting drug use, while people are dying from it.
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Presumably, the victim was his former girlfriend, Sara Molina, who has spoken to Daily Beast of the rapper’s violence. Even after becoming famous, 50 Cent hasn’t always followed the straight and narrow path. According to MTV News, in 2002, he was arrested in New York after a search of an illegally-parked SUV led to sober rappers the discovery of two loaded guns. He cut a plea deal with two years of probationary period, which required him to stay drug-free and attend anger management counseling, among other conditions.
Lil Baby
Loss and tragedy in the form Drug rehabilitation of substance abuse and addiction have wracked the hip-hop community for far too long. Artists who spent years living amidst the hardships and poverty that shaped the foundation of hip hop turned to party music, documenting escapism through lyrics of sex, drugs, and lavish lifestyles. The same music has, in some cases, left a dangerous trail of verses that can be misunderstood by impressionable young minds in the midst of their own personal desire for entertainment and escape from daily struggles. It is morally inexcusable for record labels to profit off of men barely (or not even) old enough to legally drink when their albums are, in essence, recorded manifestos describing an addictive battle they see no release from. How many must succumb to the grip of substance abuse while future generations dance in clubs to their final words?
DMX’s criminal record features a wide array of things, from driving offences to possession of guns and illegal substances to tax evasion. As Mercury News notes, he attributed much of his problematic personal life to his long-standing addiction issues. The rapper has stated that his longtime addiction to crack cocaine began when he unwittingly smoked a marijuana joint containing the drug when he was just 14 years old. Cocaine was ultimately a factor in the heart attack that caused his death in 2021 (per Vulture), and before that, he’d already had a near-fatal overdose in 2016. Recent years have brought the topic of drug addiction and the opioid crisis into the spotlight for the music industry.
