Tom's songs are known for being critical of political correctness and "woke" culture. In February 2021, his release "Fake Woke" was temporarily removed from several major streaming and download platforms, in what many fans interpreted as censorship. However, it was restored after a few days.
Sad Rappers
Tom MacDonald Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They showed up with those mumble rapper dum-dums
They've been preying on people with mental illness
And pretending to relate to get paid and create a business
They claim to be anxious, say they′re depressed
They're faking it to gain something in common with some fans for a check
It's over-diagnosed, so it′s becoming a trend
To say you′re crazy or insane or that you're sick in the head
And then they glorify the men and women losing their lives
I'm talking Cobain, Lil Peep, Winehouse, Jackson, Williams, Cornell, Bennington
Imagine all the icons that we buried probably turning in their grave
So they could witness how this sickness getting used to get paid
These rappers fabricating symptoms for fame
Their mental illness is the money on their mind, it started rotting their brains, yeah
Y′all ain't real from the chains to the gear to the grills, now it′s pain, talking tears, taking pills
Y'all ain't real, I can see it in your eyes, all lies, y′all guys don′t know how we feel
Y'all ain′t real enough to deal with us, to feel the love, nah-nah-nah-nah
Y'all just make-believe, you claim to be the same as me, nah-nah-nah-nah
People die from depression, these rappers cry for attention
And it′s in every single genre you could possibly mention
From pop to electronic, to rock, to indie, to grunge
They're tryna hook you into using the music like it′s a drug
Get you addicted to artists they manufactured to target
All of the people in therapy tryna deal with their hardships
Crafted and marketed 'till they had you convinced
That if you follow that person, they make you fine in your skin
They ain't really tryna help you, they don′t wanna make you better
It′s a lie they're tryna sell you so you always buy their records
If you wanna know the truth, they want you strugglin′ forever
So you look to them for answers with your Visa or your debit
It's like the record labels working for pharma
They made anxiety trendy by using popular artists
Then use the rappers to promote prescription pills to their audience
They created the problem to sell you pills that would solve ′em, it's brilliant
Y′all ain't real from the chains to the gear to the grills, now it's pain, talking tears, taking pills
Y′all ain′t real, I can see it in your eyes, all lies, y'all guys don′t know how we feel
Y'all ain′t real enough to deal with us, to feel the love, nah-nah-nah-nah
Y'all just make-believe, you claim to be the same as me, nah-nah-nah-nah
Exploiting our problems to benefit
They just wanna get paid
I spend all my money on medicine
Spend all your money on chains
Y′all just exploiting the misery
Popping Xannies to fade
Well, I'm throwing ones into therapy
'Cause all I know is rain
Y′all ain′t real from the chains to the gear to the grills, now it's pain, talking tears, taking pills
Y′all ain't real, I can see it in your eyes, all lies, y′all guys don't know how we feel
Y′all ain't real enough to deal with us, to feel the love, nah-nah-nah-nah
Y'all just make-believe, you claim to be the same as me, nah-nah-nah-nah
Y′all ain′t real from the chains to the gear to the grills, now it's pain, talking tears, taking pills
Y′all ain't real, I can see it in your eyes, all lies, y′all guys don't know how we feel
Y′all ain't real enough to deal with us, to feel the love, nah-nah-nah-nah
Y'all just make-believe, you claim to be the same as me, nah-nah-nah-nah
Tom MacDonald's song "Sad Rappers" is a commentary on the commercialization of mental illness by the music industry, particularly in the rap genre. He questions the authenticity of rappers who claim to relate to mental illness, accusing them of fabricating symptoms for profit. MacDonald references several famous artists who struggled with mental health, including Kurt Cobain, Lil Peep, Amy Winehouse, Michael Jackson, Robin Williams, Chris Cornell, and Chester Bennington, and criticizes the glorification of their struggles and deaths. He contends that record labels and artists are exploiting people's mental health struggles to make money, marketing anxiety and depression as trendy and normalizing the use of prescription pills.
The song starts with a rhetorical question asking where all the suicidal sad rappers came from, highlighting the trend of rappers feigning mental illness to gain fans and create a business. MacDonald argues that this trend contributes to the over-diagnosis of mental health issues, making it a fashionable way of being to claim to be anxious, depressed, or sick in the head. He notes that this romanticizes mental pain; those who are truly struggling with mental health issues barely survive, while these rappers make it seem like something that can be solved by simply buying their music or products. MacDonald sees these performers as inauthentic and accuses them of being motivated by greed, stating that their mental illness is the money on their minds.
The second part of the song focuses on the exploitation of people's mental health struggles by both record labels and artists. MacDonald asserts that these companies are preying on people in therapy, trying to draw them in with marketed and manufactured music that speaks to them. He sees this trend as a problem created by the industry itself, sold to people suffering from mental health issues through individual rappers. He claims that these rappers are promoting prescription pills to their fans to make a profit, a brilliant but disingenuous plan that is ultimately harmful.
Overall, MacDonald's song "Sad Rappers" critiques the commercialization of mental illness in the music industry and accuses performers of feigning mental illnesses to make money. He argues that the glorification of mental pain and normalization of prescription medication use are harmful to people suffering genuinely from mental health issues.
Line by Line Meaning
Where'd all these suicidal sad rappers come from?
Tom is questioning where all of these rappers who claim to be sad and suicidal have come from.
They showed up with those mumble rapper dum-dums
Tom is criticizing the mumble rapper trend that has allowed these sad rappers to rise to fame.
They've been preying on people with mental illness
Tom is accusing these sad rappers of exploiting people with mental illness for their own gain.
And pretending to relate to get paid and create a business
Tom believes these sad rappers are pretending to relate to their audience in order to make money.
They claim to be anxious, say they’re depressed
Tom is pointing out that these rappers claim to suffer from anxiety and depression.
They're faking it to gain something in common with some fans for a check
Tom believes these sad rappers are faking their struggles in order to gain more fans and make more money.
It's over-diagnosed, so it’s becoming a trend
Tom believes that mental illness is being over-diagnosed and that claiming to suffer from it has become a trend.
To say you’re crazy or insane or that you're sick in the head
Tom believes that people are using terms like 'crazy' and 'sick in the head' to describe themselves in a way that romanticizes their struggles with mental health.
They romanticize the mental pain we're barely surviving
Tom is criticizing those who romanticize the struggles of people with mental illness.
And then they glorify the men and women losing their lives
Tom believes that these sad rappers glorify and romanticize the suicides of famous musicians.
I'm talking Cobain, Lil Peep, Winehouse, Jackson, Williams, Cornell, Bennington
Tom is referencing famous musicians who have died prematurely.
Imagine all the icons that we buried probably turning in their grave
Tom believes that these musicians would be upset by how their deaths are being romanticized.
So they could witness how this sickness getting used to get paid
Tom believes that these musicians would be upset by how mental illness is being exploited by sad rappers.
These rappers fabricating symptoms for fame
Tom is accusing these sad rappers of fabricating their struggles with mental health for fame.
Their mental illness is the money on their mind, it started rotting their brains, yeah
Tom believes that focusing on making money from their struggles with mental health has had a negative impact on these sad rappers.
Y'all ain't real from the chains to the gear to the grills, now it's pain, talking tears, taking pills
Tom is pointing out the hypocrisy of these sad rappers who claim to be struggling while flaunting expensive jewelry and talking about taking drugs.
Y'all ain't real, I can see it in your eyes, all lies, y'all guys don't know how we feel
Tom believes that these sad rappers are lying about their struggles and are unable to understand what people who actually suffer from mental illness are going through.
Y’all ain’t real enough to deal with us, to feel the love, nah-nah-nah-nah
Tom believes that these sad rappers are not able to provide the genuine support that people with mental illness need.
Y'all just make-believe, you claim to be the same as me, nah-nah-nah-nah
Tom is accusing these sad rappers of pretending to understand what people with mental illness are going through in order to make money.
People die from depression, these rappers cry for attention
Tom believes that by pretending to be sad and depressed, these rappers are trivializing the struggles of people who actually suffer from depression.
And it's in every single genre you could possibly mention
Tom believes that the trend of sad rappers exists across all genres of music.
They're tryna hook you into using the music like it's a drug
Tom believes that these sad rappers are using their music to make people addicted to their content.
Get you addicted to artists they manufactured to target
Tom believes that these sad rappers are manufactured by the record industry in order to target people who are struggling with mental illness.
All of the people in therapy tryna deal with their hardships
Tom believes that these sad rappers are preying on people who are trying to deal with real mental health issues through therapy.
Crafted and marketed 'till they had you convinced
Tom believes that these sad rappers have been crafted and marketed to create a specific image in order to convince people to buy their music.
That if you follow that person, they make you fine in your skin
Tom believes that these sad rappers are falsely promising that their music can help people feel better about themselves.
They ain't really tryna help you, they don't wanna make you better
Tom believes that these sad rappers are not actually interested in helping people improve their mental health.
It's a lie they're tryna sell you so you always buy their records
Tom believes that these sad rappers are lying to their audience in order to make money.
If you wanna know the truth, they want you strugglin' forever
Tom believes that these sad rappers want their audience to keep struggling so that they will keep buying their music.
So you look to them for answers with your Visa or your debit
Tom believes that these sad rappers are promoting a culture of consumerism and encouraging people to spend money on their music.
It's like the record labels working for pharma
Tom is comparing the record industry to a pharmaceutical company, using mental illness as a money-making opportunity.
They made anxiety trendy by using popular artists
Tom believes that anxiety has become trendy among sad rappers because it is a popular topic in the media.
Then use the rappers to promote prescription pills to their audience
Tom believes that these sad rappers are being used to promote prescription pills to their audience.
They created the problem to sell you pills that would solve 'em, it's brilliant
Tom believes that the record industry has created a problem by promoting anxiety and mental illness among their artists, and now they are profiting by selling pills to solve those problems.
Exploiting our problems to benefit
Tom believes that the record industry is exploiting people's struggles with mental health in order to make money.
They just wanna get paid
Tom believes that the record industry is only interested in making money.
I spend all my money on medicine
Tom reveals that he himself struggles with mental health and spends a lot of money on medication to manage his symptoms.
Spend all your money on chains
Tom is contrasting his own spending priorities with those of sad rappers who spend money on expensive jewelry instead of investing it in their mental health.
Y'all just exploiting the misery, popping Xannies to fade
Tom believes that these sad rappers are exploiting people's struggles with mental health and are using drugs to cope with their own issues.
Well, I'm throwing ones into therapy
Tom is revealing that he invests his money in therapy to manage his mental health instead of spending it on material possessions.
'Cause all I know is rain
Tom is reflecting on his own struggles with mental health and the constant feelings of pain and sadness that are associated with it.
Writer(s): Thomas Macdonald, Nova Paholek
Contributed by Tyler R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Shawn Stewart
@the paper clip colossus _ its not uncool to have depression either. some people its a daily struggle for life and others it may only be weeks months or years that they are unwell. i have been in your position and scared to speak about what i was going through to anyone because i was told that isnt normal to talk to people about. in my opinion after being told to hide my issues instead of speaking my mind when i needed i caused myself to get worse and that led to even more things happening all one after the other until i finally snapped. i had a complete mental breakdown at work and had to go on disability after starting my dream career. if i didnt hide my feelings and put on a fake smile everyday for five years i dont think i would of went through the mental hell that insued. i lost my home, my wife and my job by the end of it all.
the reason i wanted to take the time and write this out in a very public setting is to show:
1- that screw being afraid of what people think is cool or not, that is just a waste of your time. there will always be the 1 idiot that wants to bring you down always.
2- if you feel like you need to say something say it. hiding those words dont seem like much at the time but after hundreds or thousands of times biting your tongue or putting on that brave voice instead of giving yourself the freedom to be sad or be quite or be angry etc. it will all come out in one big storm from hell, anger for weeks on end and random outbursts of tears some silent some wailing after you start to think you calmed down from having too much water in your glass for example.
3- if you think healing can take place without working things out and releasing those emotions and words you may be right but i know in my case it just kept throwing me back into everything worse and worse each time until i was ready to give up and leave without saying goodbye...
4- theres more people than you probably can imagine going through a very similar situation as you. this being said everyone works things out differently. some medicate to stay stable and not lose control of their thoughts so bad they endanger themselves anymore (this was my way of having to work through the pain) or talk to a therapist and dont be ashamed to tell someone that you have been seeing one either as there is NO GOOD REASON that you cant talk about your day just like anybody else. you dont have to reenact your session but talk about the kind of person your therapist is and why you feel safe there, that is nothing to be ashamed of no matter what anyone tells you. it would be no different if you asked what i did today and said "oh i went to the emergency room because i have been sick for a week and i keep getting worse. i cant miss anymore time at work so i need the doctor to make sure i dont have something other than the flu"
5- this is the last thing i want to say. always remember that even a stranger can have compassion no matter if they have been through it or not. i have sat down with a man who hid his pain inside a bottle sadly (but thats his way of coping i have no right to pass judgement, as long as he sees tomorrow then he won!), i never met him before in my life and he asked if i wanted to go through a photo album with him as he didnt have much family to look at it with anymore and he misses being able to tell the stories, by the end of his photos we were both crying and telling each other our struggles and what we need to survive until the next day. A TOTAL STRANGER i was in a bad place that day and being able to speak to him may have saved me that day and kept me pushing forward until tomorrow!
so i hope that this helps anyone who reads any of it. and if anyone needs to talk dont be afraid to message me- i dont care if its a fake account with a fake photo and fake name just send me a screenshot of this post and i will accept i promise- everyone needs someone to talk to sometimes it can save lives and i have experienced that myself so i will always pay it forward by doing whatever possible to help someone through a struggle with any mental illness not just depression.
now remember to keep your head up and tomorrow will be a better day and the next better and etc. if you wake up one day and its harder than the day before it can only get better tomorrow. keep positive thoughts in your head... even if its something as simple as tomorrow will be better. good luck to anyone struggling i believe in you
Echo Fox
The people who actually felt depression will not be offended by this
autonomous2010
It's refreshing hearing someone talk about the things we've long known. Romanticizing mental illness is incredibly disturbing.
Dakarai 23
@autonomous2010
Personally everyone copes with different feelings in different ways. You cant be mad at them for listening to music that describes how they feel mentally. For example NF speaks from his heart, I cannot talk for the others but its unequivocal that he raps about his life truly.
Shawn Stewart
Truth!
the paper clip colossus _
Yh tbh the reason I don't rlly talk about how I feel is cause its not cool have depression it always comes down to there just going to laugh at me or don't even give a shit
Shawn Stewart
@the paper clip colossus _ its not uncool to have depression either. some people its a daily struggle for life and others it may only be weeks months or years that they are unwell. i have been in your position and scared to speak about what i was going through to anyone because i was told that isnt normal to talk to people about. in my opinion after being told to hide my issues instead of speaking my mind when i needed i caused myself to get worse and that led to even more things happening all one after the other until i finally snapped. i had a complete mental breakdown at work and had to go on disability after starting my dream career. if i didnt hide my feelings and put on a fake smile everyday for five years i dont think i would of went through the mental hell that insued. i lost my home, my wife and my job by the end of it all.
the reason i wanted to take the time and write this out in a very public setting is to show:
1- that screw being afraid of what people think is cool or not, that is just a waste of your time. there will always be the 1 idiot that wants to bring you down always.
2- if you feel like you need to say something say it. hiding those words dont seem like much at the time but after hundreds or thousands of times biting your tongue or putting on that brave voice instead of giving yourself the freedom to be sad or be quite or be angry etc. it will all come out in one big storm from hell, anger for weeks on end and random outbursts of tears some silent some wailing after you start to think you calmed down from having too much water in your glass for example.
3- if you think healing can take place without working things out and releasing those emotions and words you may be right but i know in my case it just kept throwing me back into everything worse and worse each time until i was ready to give up and leave without saying goodbye...
4- theres more people than you probably can imagine going through a very similar situation as you. this being said everyone works things out differently. some medicate to stay stable and not lose control of their thoughts so bad they endanger themselves anymore (this was my way of having to work through the pain) or talk to a therapist and dont be ashamed to tell someone that you have been seeing one either as there is NO GOOD REASON that you cant talk about your day just like anybody else. you dont have to reenact your session but talk about the kind of person your therapist is and why you feel safe there, that is nothing to be ashamed of no matter what anyone tells you. it would be no different if you asked what i did today and said "oh i went to the emergency room because i have been sick for a week and i keep getting worse. i cant miss anymore time at work so i need the doctor to make sure i dont have something other than the flu"
5- this is the last thing i want to say. always remember that even a stranger can have compassion no matter if they have been through it or not. i have sat down with a man who hid his pain inside a bottle sadly (but thats his way of coping i have no right to pass judgement, as long as he sees tomorrow then he won!), i never met him before in my life and he asked if i wanted to go through a photo album with him as he didnt have much family to look at it with anymore and he misses being able to tell the stories, by the end of his photos we were both crying and telling each other our struggles and what we need to survive until the next day. A TOTAL STRANGER i was in a bad place that day and being able to speak to him may have saved me that day and kept me pushing forward until tomorrow!
so i hope that this helps anyone who reads any of it. and if anyone needs to talk dont be afraid to message me- i dont care if its a fake account with a fake photo and fake name just send me a screenshot of this post and i will accept i promise- everyone needs someone to talk to sometimes it can save lives and i have experienced that myself so i will always pay it forward by doing whatever possible to help someone through a struggle with any mental illness not just depression.
now remember to keep your head up and tomorrow will be a better day and the next better and etc. if you wake up one day and its harder than the day before it can only get better tomorrow. keep positive thoughts in your head... even if its something as simple as tomorrow will be better. good luck to anyone struggling i believe in you
Nathan Brindley-Kingswood
can we all agree the chorus is absolutely fucking fire
Jeff s
Dude every time I think I heard all of his songs, I find another and it is awesome. I never seen an artist with so many great songs!
Keek
🔥🔥🔥 YES!!! Pure fire!!!!
Ed Ryan
Literally came back to listen to some stuff from him and completely forgot about how unreal this chorus is.. glad I'm not the only one