Offset Recalls Getting Sober From Codeine After ‘Wake-Up Call’ From Son

During an appearance on Keke Palmer’s podcast, Baby, This Is Keke Palmer, the rapper — whose real name is Kiari Cephus — recalled how he ultimately decided to get sober after he had a “wake-up call” following a conversation with his son Jordan, 15.

Offset, 33, who shared that he’s four years sober from codeine, detailed his past use of the opioid, revealing that he first turned to the drug when Migos’ hit “Bad and Boujee” took off, and used it to help “cope” with his success.

“I was taking to the cup, and then you know what you get tricked on? A lot of artists, I feel like, be tricked on, ‘Oh, I can’t make music without the drugs.’ That’s cap,” Offset told Keke, saying he believes that’s an “excuse” artists use.

“At first, you’re just doing it, okay, experimenting and playing with it. You could get high a little bit, but then it becomes an addiction, and then, like, your loved ones start to peep,'” he continued. “My mama started telling me, ‘Hey boy, I don’t like you on this, what this is.’ And you sleep, and you aggravated, and you ain’t being my son, you’re arguing.”

The Migos alum said he had a “wake-up call” when his oldest son, Jordan, wanted a soda, asking for a drink similar to what his dad was drinking, which was seemingly “lean” or “sizzurp,” a drink that combines cough syrup — that contains promethazine (an antihistamine) or codeine — with soda and candy, according to Just Think Twice.

“I had a wake-up call,” Offset recalled. “My oldest son kept asking for like pineapple Fanta, but he don’t even really drink soda … And then one day he came in studio like, ‘Why yours is different color than mine?’ It killed me.”

“I’m like, ‘Oh no, I gotta get off of this.’ That’s what touched me,” he continued.

The “Ric Flair Drip” rapper said it was difficult learning that his son was “paying attention,” adding that he “kept asking” for soda.

“I’m like, ‘When did you start drinking soda?'” Offset recalled. “He like, ‘You drink it.'”

“One day, I was in the studio and he was like, ‘Yours is a different color than mine. Why?” he went on. “I had to lie to him because I ain’t know what to say. I’m like, ‘Mine is old, I’m about to throw it away,’ and I just grabbed it and walked off. When I went in my room, it’s just like, I damn near cried.”

He admitted that he “felt bad as a father.”

“He don’t even notice it’s drugs in here, though,” Offset explained. “He don’t know, but in my head it’s like, him even just saying he want the same soda I want. It’s just like, ‘Oh no, I’m influencing him.'”

The “Open It Up” artist again noted that his family was concerned about his codeine use.

“It was a thing with my family. My mama didn’t like it. Nobody in my family liked it, and they just kept saying it, and it started to hurt,” Offset recalled. “I’m successful, I got money, and when your mama calling you and she like, ‘You need to get off that stuff,’ and she said it two [or] three times, it hurt for sure.”

Looking back, Offset said he’s glad he has “solid people” around him who weren’t afraid to speak up.

“I try to surround myself with people around me that’s gonna put me in my place because sometimes, you know, you got the money, you’re living life, can’t nobody tell you nothing,” he said.

“I always get that wake up call from my core people, my family. I’m thankful for having that,” he shared.

Offset is a father of six. In addition to Jordan, whom he shares with ex Justine Watson, he’s dad to Kulture, 7, Wave, 4, and Blossom, 1, with estranged wife, Cardi B, and shares son Kody, 10, with ex Oriel Jamie, and daughter Kalea with ex Shya L’amour.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, get help. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline (1-800-662-4357) provides 24/7, free, confidential support for people in distress