Macklemore Shares Addiction Story To Help Others

“I struggled for so long as a youth and didn’t know there was a recovery community because by nature we’re in a program of being anonymous. Whether you’re talking about Alcoholics, Narcotics Anonymous or Cocaine Anonymous — it’s an anonymous program,” said the star. “Anonymity at the level of sober rappers press, radio and film — which I’m probably breaking right now — is one of the founding principles [that made me feel unsure].” At the age of 30, Macklemore is a proud Grammy winner with a Platinum album and multiple hit singles, but five years ago he was still facing a dark battle with drugs.

• “You know how many times I’m hit up by like, the parent of a kid who is like, ‘Yo my kid is 20 years old, he can’t stop, he got kicked out of school…what do I do?'” Macklemore, who has two daughters with wife Tricia Davis, continued.
• The natural tendency as someone with active addiction is to hide, to lie, to manipulate.
• “When I have to be still and exist within my own head, that’s where my disease lives… [But] I’m like, ‘You know what? I don’t need to pretend like I’m some perfect dude in recovery.’ I am not at all, and there’s no shame.”
• For all its gestures to sobriety, “looking forward” and moving into the future, the final chapter reads like Perry speaking from beyond the grave, reflecting on the faces of his loved ones as if he has already passed on.
• “I remember being like, ‘I don’t ever want my kids to see me loaded,'” he says of learning Davis was pregnant with their first child.
• They also released “Irish Celebration” in December 2009 in anticipation of the release of The Vs. EP.[28] In March 2010, the duo released “Stay At Home Dad”, a track that didn’t quite make Vs.[29] In October 2010, they created the VS. Redux EP.

I would do a show and there would be people at the merch table saying, “’Otherside’ changed my life.” It’s not like there was a lane there — addiction and sobriety aren’t marketable things — but there is a lane in terms of other people resonating with the subject. There is power in sharing your stories openly and honestly. He does not hide it from his fans, from the public eye, despite the stigma that addiction so often carries. Rather, the famed musician uses his addiction story – his battle with drug abuse and his journey of recovery – to increase awareness amongst his followers; to show that addiction is in fact a disease, not a choice, and that it is all too hard to escape alone. But with the right support, the right motivation, and the right drug treatment, drug addiction can be overcome. The song, a collaboration with Australian singer-songwriter Tones and I, touches on pivotal experiences in his life, including his 2020 relapse.

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For Macklemore, paying it forward is the most meaningful step. “That’s the most important thing in this world is being of service to other people; getting outside of your f—ing head. That has been my story.” But it’s also important for those battling substance abuse to know the resources available to them. “It’s a mess — but what’s more of a mess is dying,” Macklemore told Kweli.

I had one shot and I wondered what two would feel like. And then I had two and I wondered what four would feel like.

MORE: Macklemore opens up about his 2020 relapse to Dax Shepard: ‘The disease of addiction is crazy’

Following the March release of his latest album, Ben, the Grammy-winning artist joined the latest episode of health podcast On Purpose with Jay Shetty, where he revealed how his addiction started and how he’s grown on his path to recovery. “I didn’t realize that there was this massive recovery community of people that had the same disease as me, that spoke the same language, that were there to help and show up and greet me with a hug even if I relapsed, that they understood, that there was no judgment,” he said. For Macklemore, recovery to him looks like having a service outlet where he’s helping others, speaking about addiction, going to meetings, and being an active member of the recovery community.

• The world that recovery has led me to is beyond anything I ever could have imagined.
• Macklemore’s first project with CLEAN Cause will be a video series titled “Drink to This.” While the series is yet to be released, a short trailer can be found on YouTube.
• Macklemore revealed he has been sober for nearly two years after relapsing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• He said he started taking pills and smoking weed again.
• The company donates 50 percent of net profits to fund sober-living scholarships for individuals in recovery.

In 2021, Macklemore did an interview on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast. During this conversation, the artist confessed that he had experienced a relapse in the year prior. Macklemore has shared that the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to his relapse. He found that he was losing focus as his 12-step meeting became Zoom meetings. This caused him to become out of touch with his recovery community which he says is a big factor to staying sober. I was starting to make music with Ryan Lewis and I wrote a song called “Otherside.” I hadn’t had any music really connect until we put out the “VS.