I was hoping for a few ideas to show up in the comment section, but I wasn’t so lucky, but the one comment I did receive was from SlimShady702, which got me thinking. So today, while going to the rehabilitation doctor and listening to the new Eminem album on my iPod, I had a thought and am interested in your thoughts on this idea. We all know celebrities influence popular culture, with how they dress, what they drive, and how they live, but can celebrities, such as Marshall Mathers/Slim Shady/Eminem, help shine a light on serious issues as well as they do the sales of high end clothes, watches, and cars?
Take for example, Angelina Jolie, who had a very public pregnancy, and due to the risks and excess use of drugs and instruments to induce labor, announced she would be using a mid-wife, instead of a OB/GYN, and have her baby at home (or in the comforts of a home in another country), instead of in a hospital, would other women look into this as well? Would these women start researching home births, the mortality rates of home birth versus hospitals, and truly weigh their options?
Take that line of
thinking and apply it to this, Eminem went on a 4 year hiatus from the rap game to deal with family issues (divorce from his wife Kim), the murder of his best friend Proof (member of D12 and lifelong friend), and his, highly publicized, addiction to prescription drugs. On Eminem’s latest album, he dives deep into his battles, the risks, and the lifestyle of an addict. From the very start of the album, the “Dr. West skit,” he dreams of his rehabilitation counselor morphing into an “addiction demon,” who is always trying to get Marshall to come back to his beloved drugs and alcohol. This is a great metaphor for addiction. Once an addict, always an addict, you have to work on staying sober and clean, that is why Alcoholics Anonymous’ motto is “One Day At A Time.” You truly do live life one day at a time and fight relapse everyday. Shady, who is the second all-time, behind Tupac, in total record sales by a rap/hip-hop artist, has a tremendous influence on pop culture and I believe he has the ability to shine a huge light on what life will become if you continue to abuse prescription drugs like Vicodin, Ambien C.R., Lunesta, and even, OTC, NyQuil. Shady speaks very vividly of drug addiction, almost a “Scared Straight” show, only with lyrics and beats instead of prisons and inmates. On songs such as “My Darling (Deluxe Edition), “Careful What You Wish For (Deluxe Edition), “Dr. West Skit,” “Underground,” and “Hello” he describes how an addict feels, seeks, and chases that next high. But can these tales open the eyes of the youth and/or adults to show them that addiction will ruin your life, even if you are absurdly rich?
As a person who is currently going through the process of getting off of pain medication, I can attest, Shady holds nothing back in his accurate descriptions of how addiction progresses, and the end result is either cleaning up or losing everything, including your life. All this pain, suffering, and heartache just to chase that ever-elusive “ride on the magic carpet.” In a candid interview with XXL Magazine, Mathers described the exact moment he realized he was an addict, and we all know exactly when we figured out we were addicted to something, if you have ever been addicted to anything before. He stated that after shows, at the after parties, people always had different drugs and since he was the guest of honor, he never paid for any of these recreational drugs. He would enjoy his night and than go home. He would be sober for a while and then another show and the process would repeat. Then he went on a massive tour, and almost every night there would be an after party, with a few off days in between some shows. On those off days, he realized he wa
nted to get high, and started sending his staff out to get his drugs of choice (Ambien to sleep, Vicodin to make his problems go away, etc). When he started paying for it, he realized he was an addict. Once he started seeking out drugs, it was no longer recreational. It was no longer to just have a good time. Now it was full blown addiction. Marshall said something that I hope all the people who are reading this, or have read the XXL article, that are addicts and listen to the lyrics of his songs is, “You have to want to get clean, if not, you will relapse.” Say what you will about Eminem, but there are some deep songs (If you listen, and/or understand addiction) on the Relapse album, and add that with his crazy flows, you have the best album of the year. Yet, maybe along with the platinum records, Shady will help open the eyes of an addict and give that person a soundtrack to their recovery. As they go through all the withdrawal process and the learning to fight the demons of addiction, they can put on his album and know that they are not alone…
I will end with this. There is a song on Relapse called “Beautiful” (with a sampling of the Paul Rodgers, of Queen, song “Reaching Out”) and it is an awesome life song, and if you are an addict (or know someone who is and want to help them), are recovering from addiction, or are a long time friend of Bill W. (Founder of A.A.) and the 12 steps, this song hits your heart, mind, and soul. We are all beautiful, and do not let anyone tell you other wise…
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