After years of drug addiction, Eminem has been sober since 2009 and is enjoying one of the best years of his career, being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, performing during the Super Bowl halftime show, and on September 3, winning his first Emmy Award.
But on Wednesday, the Grammy winner, born Marshall Mathers, took some time to reflect on the joy and pain of his life, including his addiction, in an essay he wrote for XXL.
“You went on tour and people were just giving you free drugs,” Slim Shady commented. “I managed it for a little while. And then, it just became, I like this s*** too much and I don’t know how to stop.”
“I’m coming off The Marshall Mathers LP and going into Encore when my addiction started to get bad,” he recalled. “I was taking Vicodin, Valium and alcohol. I kinda fell off the map a little bit and didn’t explain why I went away.”
Mathers remembered in 2006, “My drug use f***in’ skyrocketed. I had f***in’ 10 drug dealers at one time… Seventy-five to 80 Valiums a night, which is a lot. I don’t know how the f*** I’m still here.”
Now, Eminem’s goal is to “always try to be the best rapper.” He named four MCs that he admires.
“What I hyper-focus on is people like Kendrick Lamar, Joyner Lucas, J. Cole and Big Sean,” Eminem said, “because they’re also focused on being the best rappers.”
Mathers concluded by advising artists to study the competition.
“The minute you sleep, someone’s coming to take your head off. That’s what I’ve always loved about rap,” he said. “It’s always evolving, and to succeed you need to be constantly aware of that and keep up with it.”
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