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"Why am I the way that I am? By understanding the past, we understand the present and the future much more clearly."

I remember it like yesterday. It was 2009 and I just turned 20. The hottest song out was Party in the U.S.A by Miley Cryus. Even though I had just gotten out of prison after doing 2 years for your typical drug and gun charges Im not ashamed to admit that Party in the U.S.A. was my jam! When you think about it, it makes perfect sense. I had just spent 2 of my best years behind bars getting less than sanitary tattoos on good days and stabbed with less than sanitary shanks on the bad days. So it's fitting that after 2 years of bloodshed I would make such a fun upbeat party song sung by a cute chick my pregame anthem. With that said I am not a huge Top 40 fan, but over the years I have enjoyed rocking to DJs mixing different versions of Miley's music. She would promote drug use in her songs and on social media that we would understand but would go over "Karens" head as her kids would pump it in the family mini van. I respected her for it and if you can party responsibly more power to you. Her music video for Slide Away that was released last year painted the party girl in a different light. The music video perfectly plays out scenes I have lived myself several time over in my live. You know the one, the after after party ended up at your house and your house is destroyed. All the drugs are gone and those God damn birds that only come out after a long night of doing coke are chirping. I hated those birds and from the looks of Mileys video she did too. You see her drifting through the aftermath of a house party, clearly unsatisfied, before ultimately isolating herself in a pool away from every one to what we can only imagine a serotonin depleted good look in the mirror. There are lots of close-up cutaways of Mileys disinterested, unsatisfied, and exhausted face as she stares off into the nothingnesses in the distance. This was a very relatable scene to me. When the party was no longer fun. Many of the lyrics even touch on this as well.

“Once upon a time it was made for us; woke up one day and it turned to dust... so it’s time to let it go.”

Then you cant get anymore direct then

“I want my house in the hills; don’t want no whiskey or pills”

The party wasn’t what it used to be and she could feel something was off. Restless, irritable, and discontent. Asking why am I the way I am? Shortly after that song was released she was hospitalized for tonsillitis and underwent vocal cord surgery for an issue she unknowingly had for years. This is where her sobriety story really begins almost 7 months ago. Last month she revealed in an interview with Variety:

"I’ve been sober for the past six months. In the beginning, it was just about this vocal surgery.… But I had been thinking a lot about my mother. My mom was adopted, and I inherited some of the feelings she had, the abandonment feelings and wanting to prove that you’re wanted and valuable,"

After broching the topic of her mother and her very own feelings she went on to her father.

"My dad’s parents divorced when he was three, so my dad raised himself. I did a lot of family history, which has a lot of addiction and mental health challenges. So just going through that and asking, 'Why am I the way that I am?' By understanding the past, we understand the present and the future much more clearly."

Let that sink in. By understanding the past, we understand the present and the future much more clearly. That is some very wise advice coming from the Party U.S.A. girl! I myself learned that very lesson while getting sober and working the steps. Wisdom like that is needed if you want to live completely abstinent from substance. She also debunked the stigma associated with being a young sober person and revealed her favorite part about her journey in the interview.⠀

"It’s really hard because especially being young, there’s that stigma of 'You’re no fun.' It’s like, 'Honey, you can call me a lot of things, but I know that I’m fun,'" She explained "The thing that I love about it is waking up 100%, 100% of the time. I don’t want to wake up feeling groggy. I want to wake up feeling ready."

I really related to allot of what Miley had to say on sobriety. I also find it quite comical how after all the years of partying and drugs we both have ended up on the same path. Recovery is funny like that sometimes. Congratulations on the new found sobriety heres to the 7 month mark any day now. Im looking forward to hearing if anything has changed in your music. If you or someone you know is struggling and feeling how Miley did please reach out and Ill see how I can help ▂ ▃ ▄ ▅ ▆ ▇ █ █ ▇ ▆ ▅ ▄ ▃ ▂ Please visit my website or call 888-343-6693 Check out my Facebook or my Instagram

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