Hip Hop and Drugs
No matter the type of hip-hop music you listen to, you will almost certainly hear something about drugs. Some good things, some bad. Artists rap about popping pills, smoking weed, railing lines, and sipping lean. They rap about drugs destroying the lives of close family and friends, also how some drugs are used as a tool to get out of poverty, expand their consciousness, or even to forget about their past life. Drugs have always had a huge impact in the hip-hop scene, from 50 Cent rapping about selling bricks, “I ain’t on no funny shit, I’m on some ‘get this money’ shit, Every four days in PA I move another brick, According to the DEA I sold dope in VA,” to an 18-year-old Lil Pump standing on a Lamborghini, sipping lean in a music video. From the ’80s to present day, the use of drug slang in songs has increased drastically. A study of drug references in rap songs found that, in the early ’80s, just 11 percent of songs produced had a drug reference. The same study was conducted for songs produced in 2008 and found that 77% of the songs produced had some sort of drug reference. The popularity of hip hop, along with the increased number of drug references, has serious effects on our society. Some can be seen as good, while others might have negative connotations. Artists talking about drug use will create a mainstream appeal and bring more acceptance. As of now, when someone thinks of a drug user, they typically think of a junkie, causing crime, homeless, in the ghetto. This way of thinking is because once someone becomes addicted there is no easy access to help. Rehabilitation clinics cost thousands, and you can’t just walk up to a cop and ask for help. You will likely be thrown in jail. So, users just spiral downwards till they cannot contribute to society and either overdose or end up in jail. Rarely do they recover. Now, if there were more acceptance and knowledge about what drugs do, the benefits and consequences, it might be known how much is safe, and what to do if a person gets addicted. There might be legal access to quality dugs that aren’t laced with fentanyl and who knows what else. If these things happened, the number of deaths and overdoses would decrease, and people who wanted to use could still be a functioning part of society. Hip hop can create a new acceptance of drug use in America. Over the coming years we are likely to see a shift in how society views drug users, hopefully bringing better access to healthcare and treatment for those suffering from addiction.
“Dope Man” by N.W.A (2008)
At the intro of this song you can hear someone ask if they have a “20,” a sack of dugs worth $20, which the guy is trying to buy with some spare change. This situation emphasizes that once you’re addicted, you’ll do whatever it takes, even pay your last quarter to get high. Throughout the song they talk about selling drugs to addicts who will do anything to get high, even selling themselves. They have a degrading tone towards the people who are addicted, which is weird, because they make more money the more addicted someone is.
“Empty” by Juice WRLD (2019)
In the song “Empty,” Juice talks about how his life revolves around drugs. Even though he made it big in the music industry, it still feels like he has nothing because of his constant desire to get high. “These drugs acting like
Mosh pits squishing me, Oh my, oh me, how they kill me slowly, Lonely, I been gettin’ no peace, OD, feel like overdosing.” He can clearly tell that drugs have taken over his life, and he wants it to end. The sad thing is, he died of an overdose a few months after this song was released.
“Hate Bein’ Sober” by Chief Keef (2013)
“Hate Bein’ Sober” is all about doing drugs. Keef says he hates being sober and implies life is better when he’s strung out. He talks about how different members of the group use different drugs. This song has the persona that drugs are fun — why would anyone be sober when they can get high?
“1993” by J. Cole (2019)
In “1993,” J. Cole and his friends give the impression that they are passing around a blunt while rapping. They say they’ve been smoking weed since 1993. They talk about smoking, drinking, and getting messed up, living the party life, giving the impression to fans that it’s fun to drink and smoke.
“I love life, Thank you” by Mac Miller (2011)
At 18 years old, Mac Miller’s career was just getting started. He makes occasional references to drug use that could influence his young audience to try them. “I ain’t on no pills, just a little weed, molly, and lean. Yeah, I did a couple drugs, now they callin’ me Sheen.” Just out of high school Mac used drugs here and there, but as the years go on and he becomes more famous, he begins struggling with drug use and addiction.
“Angel Dust” by Mac Miller (2014)
This song is about getting lost in drug use. “My brain fried, always chasin’ the same high, I’m too fucked up to function, do nothin’ but waste time.” He’s been using hard dugs for so long that he doesn’t get the same buzz anymore, so he just keeps taking more, chasing that high. Even though that verse has a negative connotation to it, the rest of the song is up beat and almost praises being faded. This song shows the lifestyle of many artists and regular people, and how they just get faded over and over.
“Self Care” by Mac Miller (2018)
Seven years after the song “I Love Life, Thank You,” Mac is realizing he has let drugs take over, and he needs to start taking care of himself. He says “Spendin’ nights hitchhikin’, where will I go? I could fly home, with my eyes closed.” In these lyrics he is talking about exploring his mind. The years of heavy drug use allowed him to “explore” different parts of his mind. In the second part of the song he says, “Didn’t know what I was missin’, now I see a lil’ different.” Meaning now that he’s started to get clean, he can see the hole he used to be in and how using drugs every day affected him. Before Mac Miller could release his next album, he died in his home of an overdose from pain pills that were laced with fentanyl.
“Circles” by Mac Miller (2020)
This is a song from an album Mac Miller was working on at the time of his death. In the first song of the album, he accepts the fact that he’s in this vicious cycle of addiction and can’t change. It’s like he could sense his time was almost up and was saying goodbye. With no one to help, many addicts end up in the same boat as Mac Miller. Often times, when people are addicted, they want to stop, but with the only option being the police or jail, they continue using and eventually OD.
With the use of drugs being constantly talked about in hip-hop culture, it clearly has an affect on its listeners. People who have never used before might feel inclined to try smoking some weed, because their favorite artist does. Then you try something a little harder, then a little harder. With no easy access to rehabilitation, and getting shamed by society for being addicted to drugs, there’s nowhere for them to turn for help. As you can see with Mac Miller, who started with lite drug use, he still ended up becoming addicted. Even with all his money, he couldn’t get the help he needed, so how can we expect people who are struggling with addiction in low-income parts of the country to get better? We’ve tried banning drugs across the country, but that hasn’t done anything other than fuel gangs, provide low-quality, harmful drugs to users, and leave them with no help. Using drugs isn’t all bad, look at the music and art created by people who use drugs on a regular basis. It’s a shame that substances that could be used to explore your mind and expand your consciousness are degraded, and people who have created such beautiful things can’t get help and are lost to their addiction.
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