He was best known for his work with Bun B as a founding memberof the Underground Kingz (UGK). He also appeared on Jay-Z’s hit “Big Pimpin” in2000 as well as “Sippin on Some Syrup” by Three Six Mafia. After serving aprison sentence, he returned to rapping and was reportedly working on acollaboration with alcoholism Too Short when he was found unresponsive in his hotel roomon December 4, 2007.

Heroin

Beyond its status in Houston’s lifestyle, the drink has fueled addiction and is believed to have contributed to the deaths of some of hip-hop’s greats. Check out the video above to learn more about lean’s cultural influence on rap music. A shifting attitude toward addiction and mental illness has taken place among the rap community. From Macklemore speaking with Obama about opioid abuse to Logic releasing a song about suicide awareness, more rappers today are bringing these subjects to the forefront. Through the years, various high-profile rappers have entered rehab for substance abuse or mental health problems.

Lean (Codeine)

Coverage on the abuse of hard drugs in the community usually focuses on tragedy surrounding certain popular rappers rather than the lyrics and the culture they create. On “Legends,” Juice sings, “They tell me I’ma be a legend, I don’t want that title now / ’Cause all the legends seem to die out.” XXXTentacion was shot by robbers at the age of 20, and Lil Peep died of an overdose two weeks after his 21st birthday. “SoundCloud rap,” as their subgenre was known, was characterized by extremely raw and oftentimes tragic songs, but just when the sound was moving toward the center of music, its most promising artists were gone.

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One person with true empathy for what rapper does the most drugs the cause is Juice Wrld’s mother, Carmela Wallace. In 2020, she launched the LiveFree999 Foundation with the mission of supporting programs that provide preventative measures and address mental health challenges and substance dependency. These preventable deaths as well as violence leading to rappers’ being murdered have had a lasting effect on hip-hop. Orlando Wharton, executive vice president at Capitol Music Group and president of Priority Records, knows very well how death can take a toll on the genre’s progression. He’s worked closely with XXXTentacion and PnB Rock, whose lives were both cut short by senseless murders. To cope with the lingering pain from a neck injury he got in a car accident, Big Lurch had been using PCP, but started getting more and more delusional and erratic over time.

Prevalence of Substance Use in Rap Music

Whether it’s Percocet pills or lean, “it’s all in the same class as heroin and fentanyl,” Chapman said. That flu-like feeling is opioid withdrawal, said Dr. Edwin C. Chapman, a Howard University College of Medicine alum who has practiced internal and addiction medicine in Washington, D.C., for more than 40 years. The symptoms range from runny nose and eyes to diarrhea and usually can be stopped with a gulp of cough syrup or lean, he said.

• Grunge is also a member of The Opioid Era, named for their gritty, raw imagery and lyrics.
• “This is an alarming trend, as rap artists are role models for the nation’s youth, especially in urban areas,” Herd said.
• After sampling 341 lyrics from rap music’s most popular hits between 1979 and 1997, the researchers found references to drugs had increased six-fold over that period.
• Eminem’s battle with addiction is documented in some of the rapper’s albums.
• Of the 38 most popular songs between 1979 and 1984, only four contained drug references.