![]() ![]() Sniffles.” As with anything, however, drug references (and drugs themselves) wax and wane in their cultural prominence in recent years, anti-anxiety drugs (see Xanax) and codeine-based concoctions (see Lean) have superseded cocaine as the rap referent of choice. It’s what we did.” Similarly, the figure of the crack-and-coke-dealing kingpin emerged as a staple of early-’90s hip-hop, from Jay-Z, who went from drug dealer to mogul, to Pusha T of Clipse, who rapped, “I move ’caine like a cripple / Balance weight through the hood / Kids call me Mr. Then, of course, there’s music: As Steven Tyler of Aerosmith said on 60 Minutes, “You could also say I’ve snorted half of Peru. In pop culture (as in life), it’s most often associated with greed, materialism, and money, or all three - in other words, Wall Street. Now, cocaine consists of processed coca leaves in the form of a white crystal powder.Ĭultural connotations: Coke stimulates the release of dopamine, causing a short but intense high that leaves a fierce craving for more. May induce: Euphoria, mental alertness, hyperactivity, hypersensitivity.Īlso known as: Coke, blow, toot, nose candy, Bolivian marching powder.īackstory: Peruvians have long chewed coca leaves as part of cultural traditions. How about William Faulkner? Dorothy Parker? Christopher Hitchens? As for the poet of hangovers, it’s hard to top this description from Lucky Jim, by Kingsley Amis: “His mouth had been used as a latrine by some small creature of the night, and then as its mausoleum.” I was a real alcoholic”) to Stephen King (“I never understood social drinking, that’s always seemed to me like kissing your sister”). Which is probably why booze has always been a writer’s vice, from Ernest Hemingway (“I have drunk since I was 15, and few things have given me more pleasure”) to Marguerite Duras (“I’m a real writer. ![]() May induce: Relaxation, reduced inhibitions, delusions of literary grandeur.Īlso known as: Booze, juice, hooch, sauce.īackstory: This product of fermented grains dates back to at least 7,000 B.C.Ĭultural connotations: Despite its reputation as a party-starter, alcohol works chemically as a depressant, impairing brain functions such as judgment, self-criticism, and inhibition. Here, we attempt to decipher the cultural meaning of a new generation of intoxicants, alongside a few familiar mainstays. We may have a good sense of the artistic reputation of, say, booze - from its effects (getting drunk) to its notable laureates (Cheever), but what is the artistic connotation of lean? It’s worth asking, given that 33 percent of the rap songs that reached the top ten of Billboard’s “Hot 100” chart in 2017 mentioned this drug. From Xanax to Adderall to Percocet to the codeine-cough-syrup concoction “lean,” there’s a medicine cabinet’s worth of drugs that are influencing, inspiring, beguiling, and, in some cases, destroying artists. What we haven’t done is reckon with an ascendant crop of pharmaceuticals - some legal, some semi-legal, some illegal - that are now routinely referenced in works of art. The definitive heroin movie, for example - Trainspotting? Pulp Fiction? The Basketball Diaries? - is the familiar stuff of barstool debates. Whether it’s booze (writers), heroin (rock stars), or cocaine (anyone with money), we’ve long associated, and romanticized the link between, intoxicants and artists’ careers, songs, novels, and films. ![]() Since then - well, there have been a few more. Many critics consider Thomas De Quincey’s Confessions of an English Opium-Eater, published in 1821, to be the first explicit exploration of the creative process and drugs. An updated guide to the culture of intoxicants. ![]()
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