A History of Musicians Using Ecstasy

Find out which one of your favorite artists have admitted to using, or have been caught with, X pills.

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Image via Complex Original
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Intro

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Eminem

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Eminem Admits Recording Parts of The Slim Shady LP While on Ecstasy

Date: April 1999

What happened? When Rolling Stone profiled Eminem back in 1999, he was so into drugs he was popping ecstasy right in front of journalists (Yeah, well Complex’s EIC Noah Callahan-Bever did Vicodin with Em. Take that!). Em told RS that two of the songs off The Slim Shady LP were made while he was on X. Em claimed he would be in the studio with Dr. Dre for days, get high on drugs, and then wake up days later and listen to what they had done.

Complex says: We sure are glad that Eminem is sober now...but we sure are glad he did drugs at some point.

Tommy Lee

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Tommy Lee Details His Ecstasy Use In Mötley Crüe Autobiography

Date: May 2001

What happened? InThe Dirt: Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band, drummer Tommy Lee talked extensively about his drug use. He even claimed he was really high on Ecstasy when he laid a sloppy kiss on Pamela Anderson for the first time. He also once said, "On Ecstasy, Joan Rivers looks like Pamela Anderson, so imagine what Pamela Anderson looked like."

Complex says: Just an FYI about this book, there is a chapter called “Our Best Friends Were Drug Dealers.” [Ques up “Party Like A Rockstar.”]

Fatboy Slim

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Fatboy Slim Claims Ecstasy Cured Him of Depression

Date: March 2002

What happened? Back in 2002, Fatboy Slim told GQ that after trying unsuccessfully to relieve stress by drinking himself to sleep, he took advice from a friend and popped some ecstasy. He later claimed that the pill cured him of his depression, something his psychiatrist couldn’t do.

Complex says: We’re no medical experts, but we highly doubt E cures depression given that studies have showed extended use can lower serotonin levels in the brain, which actually can lead to depression. So what are the chances Fatboy Slim was high when he made that claim?

Snoop Dogg

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Snoop Dogg Accused of Offering Girls Ecstasy For a Flash

Date: August 2003

What happened? As the host of Girls Gone Wild: Doggy Style, several underage girls accused Snoop Dogg and the show’s creators of giving them E pills so that they would take their tops off for the camera.

Complex says: Well of course Snoop was handing chicks scooby snacks, how else could you really convince a chick to take off her top in exchange for a lousy t-shirt?

Irv Gotti

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Irv Gotti Arrested For Possession Of Ecstasy

Date: August 2003

What happened? The former head of Murder Inc., Irv Gotti, was arrested backstage at a R. Kelly concert for possession of a single tablet of ecstasy. Gotti was also in possession of a few Viagra pills.

Complex says: Mixing the love drug with some boner pills is definitely the way to get the party started...or so we hear.

Madonna

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Madonna Claims She Did Ecstasy The Night She Was Discovered

Date: March 2008

What happened? During her acceptance speech at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Madonna spoke candidly about her life and career. The Queen of Pop—who began her career at Sire Records, a subsidiary of Warner Brothers—even spoke about the night she was discovered by A&R Michael Rosenblatt. She recalls the night as such, “I jammed my demo tape into his hand, we both did a tab of ecstasy, and then we danced the night away.”

Complex says: Although MDMA really took off in popularity in the ‘90s, apparently Madonna was doing it way back in the early ‘80s. As always, Madge was ahead of her time.

PSD

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PSD Gets Arrested With 6000 Ecstasy Pills Hidden In Clothes

Date: July 2008

What happened? Vallejo, California rapper PSD—best known for his work with Mac Dre—inadvertently proved those annoying TSA pat-downs are sometimes useful. While patting him down, TSA agents noticed a large bulge in PSD’s pants. First he claimed it was a colostomy bag (LOL!), then he claimed it was vitamins, then he claimed it was ice (because who doesn’t carry around ice?). He was eventually arrested and charged with possession with intent to distribute ecstasy.

Complex says: 6,000 disco biscuits may sound like a lot of drugs, but then again, we’re talking about a guy who used to be signed to a record label named after a slang term for X use—Thizz Entertainment.

Suge Knight

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Suge Knight Gets Arrested For Possession of Ecstasy & Battery

Date: November 2008

What happened? While in Las Vegas, Suge Knight was arrested after allegedly beating his girlfriend. The police later found Knight was in possession of Ecstasy and hydrocodone.

Complex says: Earlier this year, Knight also got into a fight in Las Vegas. And we all know what happened when Knight visited Vegas with 2Pac back in 1996. We’re beginning to think maybe Vegas isn’t Knight’s kinda town.

Lil Boosie

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Lil Boosie Admits to Sticking Ecstasy In Girls’ Anuses

Date: September 2009

What happened? While being interviewed by The Smoking Section, Lil Boosie was asked about his “craziest ‘female on the road’ story.” Boosie told the story of the time he was getting head from a chick who suddenly threw up on him. He even said that after he got cleaned up, and made the girl brush her teeth, he still managed to bust a nut. The interviewer was dumbfounded and didn’t know how to respond. But that’s not the best part!

Boosie then went and really upped the ante claiming, "We be sticking pills up girl’s booty too!" He continued by saying, “It melts in their booty hole and it hits them in 20 seconds...It hit them in the booty hole good. The booty is like eating the pill.”

Complex says: *Blankest stare*

Fergie

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Fergie Says She Used To Take Ecstasy

Date: October 2009

What happened? Prior to joining the Black Eyed Peas, Fergie was a part of a girl group called Wild Orchid. After becoming disillusioned with the group, Fergie got into the club and rave scene in L.A. and first started popping them dancing shoes. She later claimed, “It started with ecstasy. I loved ecstasy. Loved it, loved it. It was great at first, then it just went [she mimes a crashing plane].” Fergie would later move on to crystal meth before eventually getting clean and blowing up with BEP.

Complex says: We don’t condone drug use, but we’re pretty sure popping an E pill is the only way to make songs like “Boom Boom Pow” bearable enjoyable.

Streetlife

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DJ Mathematics & Streetlife Found With 110 Ecstasy Pills

Date: November 2009

What happened? During a routine traffic stop in Arkansas, police smelled weed coming from a Wu-Tang tour bus that Streetlife and Mathematics were in. The cops later found 110 tabs of thizz and both Math and Street (along with six other unnamed men) were arrested.

Complex says: 110 tabs? Sounds like there ain’t no party like a Wu-Tang party because a Wu-Tang party don’t stop!

Waka Flocka Flame

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Waka Flocka Flame Says He Would Take Ecstasy To Deal With Pain

Date: March 2010

What happened? When we interviewed him last year, we asked Waka about a bar from “O Let’s Do It” where he spit, "Ever since they killed my nigga Trap/Start popping pills and acting crazy." Waka explained that he had dealt with a lot of death, including that of his father and brother, but the death of his friend Trap pushed him over the edge. “I'm dealing with it going through Ecstasy pills, more smoking, and more drinking.”

Complex says: You got some issues Waka, we think you need some counseling, to help your ass from bouncing off the walls popping Skittles like their actual Skittles.

Lady Gaga

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Lady Gaga: “A Little MDMA Never Killed Anybody”

Date: May 2010

What happened? After seemingly collapsing on stage last year, fans worried Gaga was using hard drugs. At the time, she was also rumored to be on the “baby food diet.” She cleared up the rumors and worry by assuring the UK Times Online she didn’t have an eating disorder and that, “A little MDMA [Ecstasy] once in a while never killed anybody, but I really don't do drugs...I don't touch cocaine any more." She also claimed she “stays sane” by popping "prescription medicine."

Complex says: She only does MDMA and prescription pills? Good to know Gaga isn’t into hard drugs! It’s not like you can OD on MDMA or prescription pills!

Lil Wayne

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Lil Wayne Pleads Guilty to Possession of Ecstasy

Date: June 2010

What happened? Even while he was sitting in a jail cell Weezy was getting sued and dealing with past crimes. Back in 2008, after stopping Wayne’s tourbus at a Border Patrol checkpoint in Arizona, DEA agents found cocaine, marijuana, Ecstasy, and a handgun on his bus. Wayne and two other were arrested and in 2010 he ended up pleading guilty to only the drug charge in order to get probation and no jail time.

Complex says: On the bright side, at least Tunechi wasn’t caught with promethazine as well. [Sigh.]

T.I.

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T.I. Gets Arrested For Possession of Ecstasy

Date: September 2010

What happened? Last year, T.I. and his wife Tiny were arrested after a traffic stop in West Hollywood. Police smelled marijuana smoke coming from their car and upon further investigation they found pills in the car which tests later confirmed were E pills. Tip—who had gotten out of jail just three months prior on federal weapons charges—ended up violating his parole and got sentenced to another 11 months in jail.

Complex says: Although the entire incident was an epic fail on T.I.’s part, we never understood why people were so shocked by Tip’s arrest. You never saw it coming? Really?

Tech Nine

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Tech N9ne Goes In-Depth About His Excessive Ecstasy Usage

Date: June 2011

What happened? Earlier this year, when we interviewed Tech N9ne he broke down his long history with “Molly.” Tech claimed that he didn’t even do regular pills, he did pure MDMA. But things came to a halt the night he did 15 pills and almost overdosed. He described being so high that it felt like, “It’s like a fucking bumble bee in your head that makes you dizzy and you can’t close your eyes for real.”

Complex says: The best part of this interview was actually Tech claiming he got clean and sober all on his own without any drug counseling or rehab. Geez, whether it be record sales or drug rehab, that guy has got to keep it independent.

Big Boi

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Big Boi Arrested For Possession Of Ecstasy

Date: August 2011

What happened? Over the weekend, Big Boi was arrested after getting off of a cruise ship and charged with three counts of possession of a controlled substance and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia in Miami after border patrol caught him with ecstasy pills, MDMA powder, and Viagra. He’s living that Irv Gotti lifestyle!

Complex says: Getting off a cruise ship with a ton of X and Viagra is definitely going on the list of the supposedly fun things we’ll never do again.

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