SWOLLEN MEMBERS FOX THEATRE MARCH 2. BE THERE.
Since day one, it seemed as though SWOLLEN MEMBERS enjoyed a successful career as one of the premier groups in underground hip-hop. When it came time to record their sixth studio album, they were forced to confront the skeletons that had been hiding in their closet. During the time the group’s new album “Armed To The Teeth” was taking shape, Mad Child was struggling with drug addiction, SWOLLEN MEMBERS’ record label had collapsed, he was embroiled in legal battles and his association with outlaw motorcycle clubs provoked police to swarm his house in full riot gear. With a desire to consistently raise the bar within the hip-hop genre, Mad Child and Prevail were inspired to beat back personal demons and concentrate on creating the most powerful musical statement of their career. Revitalized, focused and stronger than ever, SWOLLEN MEMBERS are armed and ready for war. Their heavily anticipated new studio album, “Armed To The Teeth” feature guest appearances by La Coka Nostra, Talib Kweli and Tech N9NE.
CHECK OUT THIS INTERVIEW WITH MAD CHILD ABOUT HIS ADDICTION BATTLE…
As Swollen Members’ Mad Child makes his return to the spotlight after battling a three-year addiction to painkillers, he’s been forced to adapt to what he’s missed while locked in isolation.
He’s still got a long way to go in his recovery since sobering up mere months ago, but remains enthusiastic about the comeback of Swollen Members. He was in surprisingly high spirits as we talked about just where the heck he’s been for the past few years.
CHARTattack: So basically you guys are coming back with a new album after a bit of a hiatus.
Mad Child: (laughs) Yeah, you could say that. A bit of hiatus, yep.
Are you happy to be back?
Yeah, I’m happy to be back. As much as I’m happy, I’m also nervous to be back. When I say that, I mean just life in general. I’ve been in a different place for the past three years. Coming back to reality after doing a lot of self-abuse to my life and the lives of others around me, there’s a lot of repair work I have to do.
Even with the music. The whole music business was such a different thing three or four years ago, and I really didn’t pay any attention to it for the last few years. I was just getting stoned — simple as that.
So what’s your daily life like now?
I thank God every day that I’m alive and that I was able to get off the drugs. I’m proud of myself, and I know there’s a lot of work ahead of me. Keeping busy is one of the best ways to stay off the drugs. Setting goals and achieving them has been my method of success so far. I’m kind of retraining my mind to be a productive person again.
When in the past three years did you reach the turning point and realize you needed to stop?
It happened a number of times. I’d have little breakdowns and look in the mirror and realize what I’d become. I put on 35 pounds. I was fuckin’ eating two things of Haagen-Dazs ice cream every night for a year. I had become harshly overweight, lazy, wasn’t doing anything.
In the beginning, the guys would go on tours and I’d miss the plane. They would have to do shows without me. There were a lot of things. None of them individually made me quit doing drugs, but all those things added up finally made me realize I had to start mentally preparing myself.
I was living in a mental trap. I knew I couldn’t get by without taking 20 Es a day. I knew it was costing me $500 a day. I knew I wasn’t getting a pay cheque. I knew I was selling property just to get high. I knew how much money I was losing, but it was the culmination of everything when I finally told myself I was living in a trap. So I set a date and it was the gnarliest thing I ever went through.
What was it like?
I tried going to rehab. That was a year ago, and 25 days later I was back home getting high again. I wasn’t ready to get off yet. This time I did it without rehab. I did it on my own.
I stayed at my parents’ house for nine days. The first night, I tried taking this stuff called Cyboxin. I did it with a doctor, but I guess you’re supposed to let your body detox for a certain amount of time, or I had a bad reaction and I ended up in the hospital the first night. I literally wanted to die. If they had offered to put me to sleep, I would have done it. It was crazy, dude. My parents had to hold me down. I was just a completely different person. It was just insane.
When I woke up the next day, I was so happy I wasn’t flopping around like a fish out of water because that’s what happens when you kick an opiate addiction. Your arms and legs flail around ‘n’ shit and you can’t control it. Even though I felt like an 80-year-old man, I just laid in bed at my parents’ house for the next nine days just being really lethargic and depressed.
You’ve been so open about your addiction with the public. Why do you feel the importance of talking about it?
I had written songs about my addiction and got a lot of feedback from fans with the same problems, or similar ones who said it was helping them reflect on their situations.
I know in my mind there were 20 reasons why I finally said enough is enough. If I can be one of some people’s 20 reasons, then that’s a good thing. If I can help a few kids walking down that path, then it could be one in 20 reasons why they decide not to let that become part of their lives.
If I can have a few kids find out what OxyContin or Percocet or any of these painkillers really actually are before they actually get into it, then that’s a pretty good thing, too. That’s why I feel the need to talk about it.
CHECK OUT SWOLLEN MEMBERS AT THE FOX MARCH 2. GET TICKETS HERE!
