Kanye West is a lot of things to a lot of people. Genius? Sure. Chaos agent? Definitely. But if you actually listen—I mean really sit there and parse the bars—you’ll realize he’s been shouting about his vices since the George W. Bush era. It wasn’t always about the heavy stuff, though.
Back in 2005, he gave us a track literally titled "Addiction" on Late Registration. It’s smooth, jazzy, and hauntingly honest. He asks a simple question: "What's your addiction? Is it money? Is it girls? Is it weed?" He admits he’s afflicted by all three. It felt almost metaphorical then. Like he was just talking about the "rapper's trifecta" of temptations. But looking back from 2026, those lyrics feel like the first cracks in the dam.
The Evolution of the "Main Pills"
Fast forward a decade. The conversation changed. It stopped being about "weed and girls" and started being about the stuff that actually breaks a person. In 2018, Kanye went on TMZ and dropped a bombshell: he’d been hooked on opioids.
He told the world he got liposuction because he didn't want people calling him fat. Think about that. One of the most famous men on Earth was so insecure he went under the knife, and the recovery process handed him a pill bottle that nearly ruined him.
The song "Watch" with Travis Scott puts it bluntly:
"Wanna know how pain feels? I got off my main pills / Bet my wifey stay close, she know I'm on my benzos / Opioid addiction, pharmacy's the real trap."
It’s a terrifying line. He’s calling out the medical system while admitting he’s trapped in it. He even mentions benzos in the same breath. This isn't "party" music. This is a guy mid-spiral trying to explain why he’s acting so erratic in public.
Why "Yikes" Is More Than Just a Banger
On the ye album, specifically the track "Yikes," he dives deeper into the chemical warfare inside his head. Most people focus on the "bipolar is a superpower" ending, but the addiction references are the foundation.
He raps about "2C-B" and the "hospital" and how he "might leave on a stretcher." There’s a frantic energy to the song. It’s the sound of someone who is terrified of their own mind. He mentions "Fentanyl" on "Ghost Town" too, warning people not to "bet it all on a pack of Fentanyl." It’s dark stuff. Honestly, it’s amazing he was even recording during that period considering he later admitted he was "drugged the f*** out" during some of his most infamous Twitter rants.
The Shift to "Vultures" and New Vices
By the time we got to the Vultures era with Ty Dolla $ign, the addiction narrative shifted again. This time, it wasn't just pills. It was "the industry" and porn.
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In a leaked alternate version of the hit "Carnival" from 2024, lyrics surfaced of Kanye being brutally honest about a porn addiction. He’s described it as something that "warped his brain." It’s a different kind of dependency, but if you look at his lyrics across twenty years, the theme is the same: Kanye is a man who doesn't know how to do anything in moderation.
Whether it’s:
- The Early Years: Money and fame as a drug.
- The Middle Years: Opioids and "the pharmacy."
- The Recent Years: Digital addictions and "ego death."
He’s always looking for a way to numb the "minefield" he calls his mind.
What Most People Get Wrong
People like to judge the "New Kanye" and pine for the "Old Kanye." But the truth is, the seeds of his struggles were in the lyrics all along. "Addiction" from 2005 already had him stuttering "ne-never over" because he knew back then that his personality is built on obsession.
The media calls it "erratic behavior," but the lyrics call it a "minefield." He’s been telling us for two decades that he’s struggling to stay upright. The tragedy is that the same brain that produces "Runaway" is the one that falls for the "real trap" of the pharmacy.
How to Listen Differently
If you want to understand the man, stop watching the headlines and start looking at the credits.
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- Listen to "Addiction" (2005): Notice the sample of Etta James. It’s a love song used to describe a toxic habit. That’s the core of his philosophy—he loves the things that hurt him.
- Study "Yikes" (2018): This is where the mental health and the substance use finally collide. It’s messy because he was messy.
- Analyze "Watch" (2018): This is his most direct confession regarding the opioid crisis. It’s a rare moment where he doesn't use metaphors.
Next time you hear a line about "pills" or "potions" in a Ye track, don't just bob your head. He’s usually trying to tell you he’s drowning.
Your Next Step: Go back and listen to ye from start to finish. It’s only 23 minutes long. Focus specifically on the lyrics in "Ghost Town" and "Wouldn't Leave." You'll see a man who isn't just "crazy"—he's someone who is painfully aware of how his addictions have pushed away the people he loves. It changes the way the music feels.