The Slim Shady, Weezy and The Rolling Stones' guitarist join many other survivors of drug addictions, legal woes and other personal tribulations, including Metallica, Andre 3000, and Jack White.
- October 19, 2011
AceShowbiz -
Despite their rap/hip-hop genre of music, Eminem and Lil Wayne are honored with the title of Gods of Rock by GQ Magazine. The two heavyweight rappers join The Rolling Stones' guitarist Keith Richards, and together, the three of them grace the cover of the publication's latest issue.
The title itself is more than just looking at their genre of music. It's a special tribute to those artists who have survived through drug addictions, legal woes and other personal tribulations. Also highlighted in the feature are Erykah Badu, Metallica, TV on the Radio, Jack White, and Outkast's Andre Benjamin (Andre 3000) and Big Boi.
As an introduction to the special content, the magazine publishes a portfolio which chronicles the journey of The Slim Shady. In his feature, the rapper discusses his battle with drug addiction, which started with his 2000's "The Marshall Mathers LP" and got worse when he recorded "Encore" in 2004.
"Five or six songs leaked from the original version of Encore," he recalls. "So I had to go in and make new songs to replace them. In my head I was pissed off: 'Oh well. Songs leaked. Fuck it. I'm just going to take a bunch of fucking pills and go in there and have a party with myself.' I'm sure the more pills I took, the goofier I got."
As one of those who survived the battle, Eminem gushes, "The thing sobriety has taught me the most is the way I'm wired - why my thought process is so different." He adds, "I've realized that the way I am helps with the music. Sporadic thoughts will pop into my head and I'll have to go write something down, and the next thing you know I've written a whole song in an hour."
"But sometimes it sucks, and I wish I was wired like a regular person and could go have a f**kin' drink. But that's the biggest thing about addiction: When you realize that you cannot - for f**k's sake, you can not - f**k around with nothing ever again. I never understood when people would say it's a disease. Like, 'Stop it, d**khead. It's not a disease!' But I finally realized, F**k, man - it really is."
GQ's November 2011 issue will hit newsstand across the United States on October 25.
