The Path To Self-Destruction: Rock Music, Drugs, and Depression

Word Count:
509

Summary:
The article is about rock stars, who, despite their wealth, fame and fortune, ended up committing suicide.  The article also tackles the depression, drug addiction, and self-destructive ways of these rock stars who, at the very core, remained lonely, afraid, and desperate for love and acceptance.


Keywords:
self-destruction, depression, overdose  


Article Body:
Rock Stars...we are fascinated by them as much as we idolize Hollywood celebrities. We listen to their music, buy the CDs, hang their posters on every wall of our room, watch them at MTV, and go to their  concerts. We idolized them so much that we often see them as demi-gods. But beneath all that fame and fortune that the world of rock and roll had given them, many of these rock stars are on the path to self-destruction.

Often, being a rock star would also mean that they are associated with substance abuse and drug overdose such as the case of Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, among others. It is a merry-go-round of money, adulation, traveling, and being in the media. Like other human beings, these demi-gods of rock music are also susceptible to pain and depression.  Drugs and alcohol --- two things that get them going,  two substances that were supposed to ease their pains and worries... are the same poisons that would ruin their lives. 

Perhaps, we tend to forget that they just like the rest of us --- real people with real problems. Despite having multiple sexual partners, enormous amounts of money, and popularity... deep down they all want just to be loved. Even famous people suffer from loneliness and crave for love in the truest sense of the word. They want to be loved for who they really are and not for the famous persona they have created as rock artists.  

Like Joplin and Morrison, there are other music legends who have been immortalized through their  songs. Kurt Cobain and Ian Curtis, both young and musically gifted, were in the peak of their careers when they decided to end their lives.  Cobain and his band Nirvana were known for introducing the “grunge sound.”   For his part, Curtis and the rest of Joy Division had left a legacy through the song  “Love will Tear Us Apart.” Despite the appearance of “having it all”, these artists were unhappy and tortured psychologically and emotionally.  Even with all their external success and public acclaim, Cobain shot himself and Curtis committed suicide by hanging.

What made them that way? Self-destructive people are aware of their faults. They can be self-critical of their work and often think that they are not good enough, creative enough, or smart enough. They can be displeased with their personality or can be burdened by their own perfectionism. In many cases, self-destruction leads to suicide or having suicidal tendencies. 

Most who struggle with thoughts of suicide and other forms of self-destruction usually exhibit some or all of the following behavior: 

Too much smoking
Being stress out always
Drinking a lot
Having a lot of casual sex
Not getting enough rest and sleep
Not seeing a doctor or ignoring the doctor's orders 

Self-destructive people are more focused on the “outer universe and have lost sight of the need to have a sense of internal peace and self-worth.  Unfortunately, for many rock stars like Cobain, their legacy will be more about their tragic end rather than about their music.


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