50 Cent, Eminem, and others explain ‘How to Make Money Selling Drugs’

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Everyday struggle: stuck in the system

Once arrested, an almost insurmountable cycle begins for the convicted. Jail offers a chance for detained dealers to expand their clientele and increase business prospects. After release, not many opportunities are afforded a man with a record, and many return to previous ways.

The road is tougher for addicts. Even in prison, illegal substances are not hard to come by.

“When you don’t have the money to fight the drug charge, your best option is a plea bargain,” Grenier remarks. “If you have a drug problem, you’re not going to be able to afford treatment. Your problem is going to continue, and your desperation to feed your addiction may lead you to crime. Of course, if we put more money into programs that help people get off drugs…or if you put more money into the economy to build communities and bolster job growth, people wouldn’t necessarily turn to drugs.”

The government has a lot to spend, too. In 2012, the budget for the War on Drugs grew to almost $25 billion per year.

“I’m Marshall Mathers, and I’m an addict”

It’s not only the poor who suffer, nonetheless. In a brief exposé moment, Eminem shares an intimate narrative of his own, discussing his dependency on the prescription drug Vicodin.

Slim Shady talks about overcoming his addiction, going three weeks without sleep, and having to regain both his motor and verbal skills as a result of withdrawal.

“It’s one of the most compelling parts of the movie,” Grenier says. “Ironically speaking, we think it’s important to have a little levity, and to look at the bright faces, the human stories behind these characters. But at the same time not to glorify drug use.”

Long live da game: is legalization a viable option?

With How to Make Money Selling Drugs, which opens in theaters June 26, Grenier aims to inspire dialogue about the drug market, and institutions that both help and hinder its bureaucracy. Beyond the U.S, the film shows how international affiliates weigh into the problem, the depth and consequences of politicizing these issues, and the more radical option legalization would offer.

“If you legalize drugs, you obliterate a black market, and drugs become controlled substances like cigarettes or prescription drugs,” Grenier remarks. “They become pure so people are safer. They also create an economy that the government can track, and bring in additional revenue to support communities. I can’t say that I’m 100 percent behind full legalization, but certainly it has to be looked at, and I think we just have to be brave to make a different choice.”

Thus, it’s no longer about Reagan, street cred, or good against evil, but getting one step ahead of the game in order to vie with Scarface.

Grenier adds, “These are difficult issues, and take real debate and conversation.”

Follow Courtney Garcia on Twitter at @courtgarcia