Despite his legendary artistry, Lamar has been faced with great measures of tragedy through his years. In his 2010 track, “Cut You Off (To Grow Closer),” the rapper touched on the death of his grandmother, who was actively involved in his life as a child and with whom he had shared a great bond. “Ever since grandma died, everyone parted ways / Argue on holidays,” he rapped, in part. This, however, is only one of the many tragedies Lamar has been faced with through the years. In a 2013 interview with Paper Magazine, Pharrell said he doesn’t do drugs or smokes at all.
- His high energy, colorful personality and fan demographic (who indulges in drugs quite heavily) doesn’t stop him from speaking on his commitment to the straight edge lifestyle.
- In addition, he is speaking out against the promotion of drug use in hip-hop music.
- One night, while driving me home from a Cocaine Anonymous (C.A.) meeting in downtown Toronto, D asked me what kind of music I listened to.
- Artists including Kid Cudi, Big K.R.I.T., Joe Budden, and Macklemore have discussed the dangers of addiction, sharing their own experiences.
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In seven months I accomplished more than I could accomplish in three or four years doing drugs.” During his abstinence, the Rap God has released platinum-selling albums Relapse, Recovery, and The Marshall Mathers LP 2. Like Kendrick Lamar, Vince Staples has avoided taking drugs and drinking alcohol. The Long Beach, California rapper’s decision to stay sober stems from the traumatic events he witnessed during his childhood. In an appearance on Drink Champs, Vince expressed that he never wanted to get caught with drugs and always wanted to stay alert when growing up in an area filled with gang violence.
- As Lamar’s lyrics suggest, these are all unsettling parallels of Jim Crow-era segregation, oppression, and violence, and they reinforce cycles of devastating inequality (Alexander 2010).
- Kendrick Lamar’s sobriety journey continues to inspire a new generation of artists and individuals seeking recovery 7.
- I once smoked with Chiddy Bang in college and it was one of the best days of my life; I’ll always love Chiddy Bang because of it.
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Dot in Vegas from way back when and there’s the astonishingly powerful “u,” which depicts the unfun side of getting intoxicated, but for the most part Kendrick is a sober artist. He chooses to live a lifestyle that isn’t seen often in the modern musical world. In including accusations of pedophilia, the hip-hop artist went deeper than ever — and won five Grammys for doing so.
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Although she let the pressure to be a “social butterfly” get to her as she rose to fame, she is now comfortable with being an introvert. “I’m just always trying to surround myself with better people and be the best version of myself possible,” she told lifestyle website Byrdie, as reported by The Fix. Take a look at this list and find out which of your favorite rap stars abstain from drugs and alcohol. When Kendrick Lamar was 5, he saw a teenage drug dealer gunned down in front of his apartment building.
“The instinct to get out the way when you hear a popping sound, that’s real for me,” Lamar told The Guardian, attributing it to the neighborhood he was raised in. When he was only 5, Lamar saw a teenage drug dealer get killed in a drive-by shooting in Compton. “It was outside my apartment unit. A guy was out there serving his narcotics and somebody rolled up with a shotgun and blew his chest out,” he shared during an interview with NPR. Unsurprisingly, these unfortunate incidents ended up shaping Lamar and influencing his music.
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Like his earlier cannabis references, Kendrick’s mention of rolling up isn’t a pure celebration of weed’s potential to relax fear away. In classic Kendrick style, this song is deeper than first meets the eye — or ear, if we’re being precise. This track, featuring Jhene Aiko, is from his 2011 project Section.80. The song explores the emotional distance that comes with personal growth, as Lamar reflects on how ambition and self-discovery can strain Substance abuse personal relationships.
No, rapper Kendrick Lamar is not a member of the fictionalgroup, the Illuminati. According to Setlist.fm, here’s what Kendrick Lamar and SZA played at a recent Grand National tour stop in Germany. As a joint-headlining show, the two artists does kendrick lamar do drugs will swap short sets all night.