Northern Ont. rap artist shares his relapse story through music

Sudbury rapper Mickey O’Brien is getting ready to drop his latest album, 'Shift Change,' on April 22.

O'Brien said the music tells of his personal struggles.

"I struggled a bit. I had a relapse at the beginning of COVID and I know a lot of people were having a really hard (time)," he said.

"The record itself was me going through that process. You know, my last video that I released is a song called 'Bill Wilson,' and I talk about my relapse pretty vividly during that and the struggles I was going through at the time."

"The record itself -- Shift Change -- I always go back to my mining roots and the culture of our great city and you know shift change coming out of the dark and going into the light," he added.

O'Brien has always been open about his struggle with addiction and he hopes those on the outside looking in can understand what people with addiction issues go through when listening to the album.

"It’s always very humbling when someone reaches out and says my music is helping them and I’ve had a lot of people reach out," he said.

"Looking from the outside in, I think a lot of people don’t understand, like, how could someone do that to themselves."

O’Brien said he’s excited to get back to playing live music in the coming weeks as he begins a cross-Canada tour out west. For local fans, he will be at the Townhouse in Sudbury showcasing his new music April 21.