Illustration by Ana Mouriño
With eight albums under his belt and 15 Grammy Awards, Eminem is worth $37.5 million, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.
Until Macklemore came along, Eminem was the only white rapper with street cred. He has since collaborated with both 50 Cent and Dr. Dre, two of hip-hop’s most revered artists. Eminem is taken seriously by the hip-hop community, unlike white rappers who came before him.
But with all the fame and fortune comes great instability and hardship as with many who live in the world of celebrity.
Until he got sober in 2008, Eminem had a problem with prescription drugs – particularly Vicodin, Valium, and Ambien.
According to an interview with Rolling Stone, the pill-popping was intense. “In a day I could consume anywhere from 40 to 60 Valium. And Vicodin… maybe 20, 30? I don’t know. I was taking a lot of shit.”
Marilyn Monroe had a pill popping problem. So did Johnny Cash. And Michael Jackson. Something about the stresses and anxieties of being famous lends itself to dependence on prescription drugs.
During a bout of writer’s block in December of 2007, Eminem was in the throes of depression when someone gave him some shiny new blue pills, according to The New York Times. They were methadone, and Eminem overdosed, dropping to the floor of his bathroom. He went to the ER and his PR machine swept it under the rug, calling it a case of pneumonia.
It was a wakeup call, but addiction still had its grip on Eminem. He cut out the pills cold turkey and relapsed within three weeks. He continued to use until April 20, 2008, when he entered rehab, started a 12-step program, and got sober. He is still sober today.
Eminem’s recovery has been fodder for his music. Two of his albums are called Relapse and Recovery. One song in particular speaks directly about his addiction.
“This song I want to dedicate to anyone who ever lost anyone to addiction,” Eminem told a sold-out crowd in Pasadena, California, last year. “I could not have gotten through it without you.” Then he launched into “Not Afraid,” the lyrics of which are raw declarations of Eminem’s process of getting sober:
It was my decision to get clean
I did it for me
Admittedly, I probably did it subliminally
For you, so I could come back a brand new me
You helped me see through
Although I don’t count myself a fan of Eminem’s music, I commend him for being bold enough to speak up about his addiction and recovery. For him to do it permanently, not just through interviews but through his art and on wax, is even more admirable.
At the Pasadena concert, Eminem continued: “I am under the impression there are a lot of people under the influence of an illegal substance,” he said, the crowd erupting in cheers. “If not, how many of you are just fucked up mentally? That’s why it feels like such a family.”
While it is undisclosed whether or not Eminem may have a psychiatric illness himself, this statement sympathizes with those who do. And his mother recently wrote a book in which she alleges her son is bipolar.
Mental illness or not, Eminem’s legacy is unstoppable.
Just last month, Eminem was presented with not one but two of the Recording Industry Association of America’s which are bestowed for songs that have sold 10 million copies. Eminem earned his Digital Diamonds for “Not Afraid” and “Love the Way You Lie.”
Looks like sobriety is paying off.
