Staying Sober: Fifteen Rappers Who Don’t Smoke

Master P doesn’t just rap about weed; he’s also a businessman. During 2016, he launched a line of legal pot products called Master P’s Trees, which includes everything from edibles to flower. More often than not, Rick Ross is spotted with a joint or blunt hanging out of his mouth or twiddling between his fingers. On the heels of launching his 47 Minutes podcast with Tidal, Joey Bada$$ gave fans more food for thought on his Instagram story Wednesday night (March 7).

J. Cole Talks New Rappers, Drug Abuse and Calls His Critics “Idiots” In New Interview

In the ICM company box at the Staples drug addiction treatment Center, Dreamville’s extended roster is on hand. Cole and Hamad have courtside seats, but they spend most of the game in the box. It’s that sitting down there, near the other celebrities, doesn’t excite him. He feels at home among his close friends, and opportunities to hang these days are few and far between.

Eminem

These days, prescription drugs seem to be a part of the rapper starter kit. While, for the most part, drug use in hip-hop has never been taboo (meaning you can’t totally blame this on the kiddos), the promotion and use of drugs of the highly addictive nature is at an all-time high. Lil’ Kim’s debut solo album, Hard Core, became a critical and commercial success. The rappers with the most alcohol mentions in their Billboard Hot 100 music during that time period were Flo Rida, Drake and Lil Wayne. A study conducted by the University of Pittsburgh in 2008 analyzed Billboard magazine’s list of the 279 most popular songs of 2005.

Check Out 15 Rappers Who Don’t Smoke Below!

• Perhaps you have been reducing your alcohol intake and following suit of the many teetotal celebrities who have done the same, if so, your choice is backed by the latest science.
• It can include cultural influences, socioeconomic backgrounds, mental health struggles, and the desire to portray a particular image.

Clapton has been sober for almost 30 years and wrote very frankly about his struggles with addiction in his memoir, Clapton. Cooper says that he drinks soda at bars instead of alcohol which helps him stay sober. This is a story about sober musicians—about the life that has led them here, and about the life that they live now—but there is no single story here. It’s one thing to play up drug use as part of the creation of a musical persona (see The Weeknd), but it’s another to completely fake it for the sake of selling records and signing sponsorship deals. I always believed 50 to be an authentic artist, especially at the beginning of his career, but apparently his desire to sell records and brand loyalty trumps everything.

Many have penned verses about taking drugs to cope with trauma and depression. Artists including Kid Cudi, Big K.R.I.T., Joe Budden, and Macklemore have discussed the dangers of addiction, sharing their own experiences. Recently there has been a noticeable shift in the mindset of some MCs when it comes to self-medicating on opiates. While, for the most part, drug use in hip-hop has never been taboo (meaning you can’t totally blame this on the kiddos), the promotion and use of drugs of the highly addictive nature is at an all-time high. With that said, if you’re going to get Alcoholics Anonymous into cannabis, an edible may not be the best first experience. It hits you when you least expect it, and if that brownie is potent, it can freak anyone out.

J. Cole: “I Lost Myself in the Smoke”

Demi Lovato is wonderfully vocal about her fight against addiction and has written several songs about it. In this song, she rejects the notion that she will go back to the bad days. She joined the 27 Club, a group of musicians, singers, and other celebrities who died at the age of 27, often due to substance abuse or related causes.

• He’s partnered with The Reserve weed dispensary in Santa Ana, California.
• I don’t actually know.” But realizing she had what could be an issue, P!
• The Detroit lyricist has rapped about his addiction and recovery in his music.
• Clapton described this as a cleverly anti-drug song and that it is “a reality check about what it does.” In later versions, the band would shout, “That dirty cocaine,” to reinforce the message.
• His fiancee discovered his sleeping pill habit when she found a pill in his shoe at SXSW.

But more and more, those lavish, reckless lifestyles seem to be something of the past for many, including some of the biggest names in music. The old ways are being left behind for a new understanding of addiction and mental health. In that same piece, Em is quoted as saying, “I had to regain motor skills, I had to regain talking skills.” His drug use affected him so severely that he had to relearn how to talk and how to rap.

Rappers Who Love the Casino

This seems to be the overarching message in an exclusive new interview he gave to longtime hip-hop writer Paul Cantor, published in Vulture. Kid Cudi is well-known for addressing themes of addiction in his music, and in interviews he has revealed more about his personal struggles with substance abuse. Eminem has often discussed his struggles with addiction in his music.