Album: This Unruly Mess I've Made (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song is about the perils of prescription pill addiction. It details the story of the titular young man who became addicted to OxyContin and died. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis debuted the tune during the AMAs on November 22, 2015 along with guest vocalist Leon Bridges.
  • Macklemore: "This one is personal… I started writing it when my friend Kevin passed from an overdose on prescription medication. It was my attempt to process his death. To grieve. And also to examine the over abundance of prescription drugs in America. How quick we're taught at an early age to put a pharmaceutical band aid over our pain/anxiety."
  • Bridges, who had just released his acclaimed debut, Coming Home, that same year, didn't know what to expect when he flew to Seattle to meet with the duo. "I didn't know what the vibe was," he told Rolling Stone. "Basically, the song is saying that we can't put a band-aid on certain medical problems. I don't know too much about his friend, but it's an honor to have been a part of it. A lot of my friends, they were a little skeptical of the fact that I would do a song with him, but I think it’s great that I didn't have to compromise."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"They're Playing My Song

A song he wrote and recorded from "sheer spiritual inspiration," Allen's didn't think "Southern Nights" had hit potential until Glen Campbell took it to #1 two years later.

Richard Marx

Richard MarxSongwriter Interviews

Richard explains how Joe Walsh kickstarted his career, and why he chose Hazard, Nebraska for a hit.

Commercials

CommercialsFact or Fiction

Was "Ring Of Fire" really used to sell hemorrhoid cream?

John Doe of X

John Doe of XSongwriter Interviews

With his X-wife Exene, John fronts the band X and writes their songs.

Yoko Ono

Yoko OnoSongwriter Interviews

At 80 years old, Yoko has 10 #1 Dance hits. She discusses some of her songs and explains what inspired John Lennon's return to music in 1980.

Loreena McKennitt

Loreena McKennittSongwriter Interviews

The Celtic music maker Loreena McKennitt on finding musical inspiration, the "New Age" label, and working on the movie Tinker Bell.