By Madison Kenn, Staff Writer
To those of you who are social media fanatics, , you may be familiar with what occured on September 7, 2018. A week ago, a popular rapper Malcolm James Mccormick, more commonly known by his stage name Mac Miller, was declared dead in his home due to substance abuse.
Fans, close family members, and celebrities were distraught by the news. Ariana Grande in particular, was devastated, as she was his former girlfriend of 2 years, as well as his best friend, and remained a close friend until his sudden passing.
As the news of Miller’s death went public, fans started to display their emotions on social media.
Many thanked him for all that he had done, and offered condolences to his loved ones. Others acted out of anger, and instead of being sympathetic, began to blame Ariana Grande for the death of her ex.
Fans would leave these hateful comments on Grande’s twitter, instagram, and any social media website they could get their hands on.
Some may narrow Miller’s actions down and link it to Ariana. For example, in May, Miller, was arrested for DUI less than a week after things ended between the two.
It can also be observed that Miller became more positive around the time that he and Ariana first started dating in 2016. Although this may be true, he struggled with depression, and substance abuse before and after their relationship.
It is also unfair to expect an individual to put their life on hold to care for someone else. It’s not fair to hold people accountable of nursing their significant others to health when dealing with a disorder, such as drug addiction.
It is generous to provide support and love to the sufferer, no matter the relationship, however, this differs from healing. Ariana, as Mac Miller’s best friend had mentioned, was understanding and caring for Mac to the best of her ability.
She herself even admitted that “I am not a babysitter or a mother, and no woman should feel that they need to be,” in a twitter response addressed to a Mac Miller fan after blaming ariana of “dumping him for another dude after he poured his heart out on a ten song album.”
To those who believe it is Grande’s fault, i implore you to try and babysit a mentally unwell partner. When in an unstable relationship, one’s partner’s presence alone can be draining, and can take a toll.
Grande broke up with Miller, yes, but it was never up to her to keep him stable. From that point on, it was up to Miller to find it in himself to get better. As hard as it is to help oneself, it is not up to an ex to do that work for you.
It’s unfortunate that fans focus on an individual’s public actions, rather than what love really entails, as far as caring and supporting one another in private.
Whether you are a fan of Miller or not it is clear to see that drug overdoses are a growing issue among today’s youth,particularly the rich and famous.
The culture that currently surrounds the music industry, however is no different than it was in our parent’s generation, with the “27 club” being one of the most known pop culture phenomena in history.
Ariana is not at fault in the death of miller, and it is in fact a mix between his depression, and the toxic culture that surrounds celebrities in the music and movie industries.