Veteran rapper Jackson ‘CMB Prezzo’ Ngechu has opened up about his struggle with fame.
The 44-year-old, who shot into the limelight in 2004 when he launched a music career that ushered in an era of musical flamboyance in the country, reveals how fame negatively impacted his life.
“With fame comes a lot of hullabaloo, ups and downs, distractions, women, drugs, you name it. I am not going to say that I have never done drugs. I smoke weed from time to time. I used to do the yayo drug, but as time went on, I got control of my situation. There are drugs that I used and lost myself and never touched again after I sobered up.” Prezzo confesses.
Yayo is a slang term for the illegal drug cocaine, which has several other slang including nose candy, coke, rock, and snow, among others.
On beating his drug addiction, Prezzo says his strong mentality helped him from falling into the drug abyss.
“I’ve done drugs before but one thing I thank my God for is that I’ve never been to a rehab center and that’s because I have a strong mindset. You shouldn’t let the drugs control you. I controlled the drugs, I didn’t let the drugs control me. I would do the drugs and if I have to be at work at 8 o’clock, I will be at work. I went to Big Brother Africa (in 2012) and stayed there for 90 days and I was okay because the only drugs you could get there were cigarettes and booze,” he adds.
For Prezzo, drug abuse is only a fraction of his struggle with fame. He also had to overcome depression when his highly publicized marriage fell apart. Prezzo married his ex-wife, Diasy Kiplagat, in 2008 at a time when he was at the height of his music career, but the marriage lasted only three years.
When Diasy filed for divorce in 2012, he accused the rapper of being a violent drug user and adulterous. Prezzo, who says he regrets spending Sh4.5 million on the wedding, apportions blame to fame but is quick to boast of how he has turned his life around and also thank God for seeing him through.
“I was shot in the head at close range (by thugs) but I am still here. I overdosed on cocaine and was in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) of Nairobi Hospital for a week, but I am still here. I got stabbed in the back while studying in Canada, but I am still here. When I sit back and ask myself why is God giving me all these opportunities, I believe that God put me here for a reason.”
