Royce Da 5’9 recently opened up about his battle with alcoholism and his subsequent recovery, during an interview with HipHopDX. Royce says it was in the company of Dr. Dre when he first began drinking.
“It was just so many years of just — excuse my language— fucking up,” Royce told the outlet while reflecting on the dark time in this life.
He explained: “Just doing bad stuff, doing, making really bad decisions, having myself in situations that quite honestly I just felt like I was better than. It’s just dumbing myself down a lot. It was just really hard to stand on anything when you’re letting go of your inhibitions all day, every day. This is the business for that, you know what I mean? Once I started reaching a certain age, you don’t look cool doing that shit for a long time. It’s like first they’re laughing with you, then they start to laugh at you.”
Royce eventually quit alcohol and drug use in 2012 to focus on his life as a husband and father. He says his longtime collaborator, Eminem, played a pivotal role in supporting his recovery.
“I like to call it a spiritual awakening. I just woke up one day and there [it] was… I felt like I was just up. I made the necessary phone calls. I called Marshall [Mathers], and I said ‘Yo, I’m stopping drinking. I’m not drinking no more.’ He was like ‘Dog, that’s the realest thing you’ve ever said to me. Come home.'”
Royce will celebrate his ninth year of sobriety in September.
[Via]