Macklemore Says There's 'No Shame' Relapsing During Recovery

Macklemore, real name Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, is opening up more about his relapse in 2020.

The music artist has long battled drug and alcohol abuse. He first went to rehab in 2008 and has been on the road to recovery since.

Macklemore seemingly found overnight success with his song “Thrift Shop” back in 2012, and has been fighting a good fight to stay clean and sober.

However, the pandemic hit in March 2020 and many people across the world found themselves resorting to alcohol and drugs more than ever to pass the time.

Macklemore initially revealed he had relapsed during an episode of Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast in April 2021.

The rapper had not intended to reveal his relapse, but Shepard, who is also a recovering addict, opened up about his relapse which in turn propelled Macklemore to talk about his.

Now, in a new interview with People, the Grammy winner is digging deeper into the “painful” period of time.

"It was really painful for myself and for the people who loved me,” he said of his summer 2020 relapse. “I stopped doing the work.”

Macklemore also felt compelled to open up about his relapse in order to help anyone struggling feel less alone.

"When I have to be still and exist within my own head, that's where my disease lives… [But] I'm like, 'You know what? I don't need to pretend like I'm some perfect dude in recovery.' I am not at all, and there's no shame," he admitted.

It was Macklemore’s father who got him into treatment in 2008.

The rapper is forever indebted to his dad saying, “Getting that help saved my life. I hope that people will come out of the shadows, that the guilt and the shame of the disease of addiction lessen and we don't feel like we need to hide anymore."

In addition to doing the personal work to ensure his recovery is successful, the musician is also open about his recovery journey with his three small children.

Macklemore and his wife, Tricia Davis, share three children together: Sloane (6), Colette (3) and Hugo (6 mos.).

He noted that Sloane has known about “daddy’s struggles” since she was three to four-years-old.

"Why would I hide it? It is who I am," he says. "In terms of Daddy's sober meetings that he needs to go to, she's well aware and has been for quite some time."

In addition to Macklemore and Shepard opening up about relapsing during the ongoing pandemic, Demi Lovato also recently admitted to relapsing.

Earlier this month, The Blast informed you of Demi’s stay in rehab.

Page Six reported that the singer went to rehab for a brief period of time after giving up their “California sober” lifestyle.

“California sober” means you forego drugs with some exceptions. Demi was smoking marijuana and drinking occasionally.

A source close to Demi revealed they went to Utah for treatment. The source didn’t specify when the singer, who came out as non-binary, went back to treatment, but they are now back home and are “doing well.”

Demi overdosed on drugs back in 2018. They suffered three strokes and one heart attack during their OD.

They revealed in their 2021 YouTube documentary, “Demi Lovato: Dancing With The Devil,” that the OD left them with brain damage which they still feel the effects of today.

Back in December, Demi revealed they had ditched their “California sober” ways after seeing it wasn’t serving them well.

“I no longer support my ‘California sober’ ways,” they said last month in an Instagram Story.

“Vanderpump Rules” star, Lala Kent, was outspoken about Demi’s sobriety and did not support their lifestyle.

Last year, the “Vanderpump Rules” star appeared on the “Behind The Velvet Rope” podcast to dish about her book, motherhood and more.

Lala is no stranger to showing off every aspect of her life, after all she is a cast member on one of the biggest reality TV shows of this generation!

Lala has shown the world the good, bad, glitzy and drab aspects of her life, so when the topic of sobriety came up on the podcast, she was an open book.

Podcast host, David Yontef asked what Lala thought about the new “forms” of sobriety such as, California Sober, which Demi claimed to be back in March.

They revealed their sobriety status on “CBS This Morning” last year and explained, “I think the term that I best identify with is ‘California sober. I really don’t feel comfortable explaining the parameters of my recovery to people, because I don’t want anyone to look at my parameters of safety and think that’s what works for them, because it might not.”

Lala has been sober since 2018 and doesn’t feel Demi’s definition of her sobriety is appropriate.

“I don’t like to judge, but I actually think that that’s super offensive,” she said. “There are people out there who work their ass off to never take themselves out of reality and to never place themselves in an altered state.”