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Juice WRLD’s Mother: “My Biggest Fear Was Him Overdosing”

Juice WRLD did not keep it a secret that he was self-medicating to help him cope with the pain of his depression, anxiety, and other mental health concerns. Throughout his musical career, the late Chicago rapper was open about his struggle with substance abuse, as well as addiction and more.

On “Wishing Well“, which appears on his posthumous studio album Legends Never Die, Juice WRLD sings: “If it wasn’t for the pills, I wouldn’t be here/But if I keep taking these pills, I won’t be here”. The line is a sad view of how the artist, whose real name was Jarad Higgins, saw his battle.

His mother, Carmella Wallace, has spoken freely about her son’s death, as well as his addiction issues. In a new interview for ABC 7 Chicago, she explains the purpose of the Live Free 999 organization, as well as the reason why she continues to remind people about Juice’s addiction.

“It was devastating, but one thing I decided early on was, I was not going to hide the fact that he died from a drug overdose,” said Carmella Wallace about her son’s death. “I didn’t want to keep that secret because a lot of people deal with that every day”.

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She says that she and Juice often spoke about his struggles with mental health. She even asked him to seek professional treatment instead of continuing to abuse pills.

“I said, ‘if you have anxiety, then you need to get medicated properly for it instead of medicating yourself,’” added Wallace. “I talked to him about it. I told him my biggest fear was him overdosing on the stuff. That’s why I made the decision I have to talk about it with other people. I can’t keep that as a secret.”

She goes on to say that, while Juice was a superstar in the eyes of his fans, to her, he was just Jarad.

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“Juice Wrld was an icon but Jarad was my son,” she said. “I didn’t treat him like a celebrity. In fact, the first time I saw him perform, it was in Chicago. I forget where, but I saw the crowd and I saw the girls and ‘take a selfie with me.’ He was pumped up. He was still living with me at the time and when he came home, I said, ‘take out the garbage,’ because I just wanted him to stay humble.”

As of late, a collaboration between Juice WRLD and XXXTentacion has been teased by DJ Scheme and Cleopatra Bernard, XXX’s mom. Ally Lotti, Juice’s girlfriend, stated on Twitter that she “doubts” it will ever come out though. Read more about that here.

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Kanye West Joins Chicago Ceremony Honoring His Mother With Dr. Donda West Way

Kanye West was in Chicago for a street naming ceremony honoring his late mother, Dr. Donda West, and celebrating her lasting contributions to the city, her impact on education and the arts, and her influence on her son’s life.

A portion of 78th Street bears the official designation of Dr. Donda West Way, an appropriate tribute to a woman whose legacy remains deeply entangled with Chicago. Local news covered the ceremony, attended by community leaders, and Ye could be seen clapping in the background, wearing shades, as the new street sign was unveiled.

The event celebrated Donda West’s accomplishments and her impact on the people in her life. It was also a moment of profound personal significance for Kanye. His mother played a large part in building his confidence and supporting his musical ambitions, leading him down the path that would ultimately make him one of the most recognizable artists in music.

West had already paid tribute to his mother in his 2021 album Donda. The project took 10 years to complete, the amount of time it took Ye to process her tragic passing. Donda’s voice is present throughout the album, adding another personal element to a project centered on her memory and legacy.

The Chicago ceremony falls during a busy time for West. The artist is on a world tour and played a couple of shows in Chicago just a few weeks ago. Despite the ongoing controversy about his recent past and public reception, his repeated returns to the stage have underscored the enduring size of his audience.

Currently, the unveiling of Dr. Donda West Way is not about music but about celebrating Donda West’s life and accomplishments and the impact she continues to have through the legacy she left behind.

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DJ Akademiks Opens the Door to Pusha T Amidst Drake Controversy

DJ Akademiks seems to be changing his tune on Pusha T after the leak of the rapper’s alleged album with Pharrell, though the project reportedly includes several direct shots at Drake.

The reaction is notable as Akademiks and Pusha T have been on completely unique sides of the long-running Drake-Pusha T divide. Pusha T’s infamous beef with Drake reached a major milestone in 2018 with the release of “The Story of Adidon.” Akademiks has an OVO chain and has been a big supporter of Drake, which makes his latest comments about Pusha T even more shocking.

The two have had their differences, though they have never gone back and forth publicly over the years. Akademiks, however, responded to the leaked project with a more sympathetic view of Pusha T’s position. Akademiks didn’t just point out the rapper’s continued Drake references; he also recognized that Drake has been beefing with Pusha T and Pharrell over the last few years.

Things got spicy when Akademiks reminded him that Pusha T has liked a couple of his posts before. That detail apparently has Akademiks considering reaching out directly to talk with Pusha T.

Does Pusha T even want that kind of conversation? Still, Akademiks’ comments imply that he believes there’s room for a more productive discourse between two personalities who have historically been on opposite sides of the Drake-Pusha T feud.

For now, the leaked album has provided an unexpected opening for dialogue. Akademiks’ openness to Pusha T’s side, even with his clear ties to Drake, shifts the conversation away from taking sides and toward whether a direct conversation could actually happen.

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