2006 ABC News

2006 ABC NEWS – It’s more than a drug; it’s a culture. It’s what’s known on the street as “Lean,” a highly addictive cocktail of cough syrup, [soda] cold medicine and candy — so potent it makes you “lean” over when high.

The drug first began to get attention a few years ago, when a popular Houston DJ overdosed on it. At that time, it was easy to make and easy to get, says Ron Peters, a professor at the University of Texas School of Public Health. “As far as across Texas, across also the southern part of the United States, estimates have shown that it to be at one time a pretty common drug of choice amongst kids…anywhere from ninth grade all the way up to young adults,” says Peters.

Authorities have recently tried to crack down on the drug, but while the crackdown has made it harder to get, it’s also made it easier and more profitable to traffic.

“A year and a half to two years ago the price for a pint of codeine promethazene cough syrup was about $20 and was called a deuce, and for 16 oz, which was called a PT cruiser, would go for about $120 to $125,” says Peters. “Now a pint of codeine promethazene would go for anything from about $250 all the way up to $350.”

Pharmacists, doctors and drug dealers from other states are getting into the act, says Peters. Terrence Kiel, a player for the San Diego Chargers, was arrested this week for allegedly shipping large quantities of prescription-strength cough syrup to Texas, where Lean is most popular. He is expected to enter a plea in court next week.

Lean is so popular that it produced a Houston-based rap called screw music named after DJ Screw, who overdosed on the drug. The music takes hip-hop beats and slows it down to a crawl, reflecting the sleepy, laid-back feeling the drug gives its users.



Trayvon’s Personal ReMix from U-Tube

It was even the inspiration for a Top 10 song by the Oscar-winning group Three-Six Mafia, “Sipping on Some Syrup.” Peters says the drug and the music have grown together. “One of the studies did show that a lot of children found out about what codeine promethazene was through the music,” he says. “And some of them stated that their first time finding out about it was through the messages that were in this screw music.” But, Peters says, the music is a way to make parents and the community aware of what is happening.

He instructs parents to “always listen to some of the music some of our kids listen to,” he says.

“Whether they like or not, it can give them insight into what’s happening in their kids’ lives and open up dialogue.” (Visit ABC News)

[…] While robo tripping is the new rage for the mainstream, we in hip-hop know that “lean,” “sizzurp” or “purple drank” has been a recreational drug popular in the southern United States (particularly Texas) for many years. Sizzurp’s main ingredient is prescription-strength cough syrup containing codeine and promethazine, typically mixed with ingredients such as Sprite or Mountain Dew and pieces of Jolly Rancher candy.

[…] No legal distinction currently exists in the United States between medical and recreational use, sale, or purchase of cough syrup. Some states and/or store chains have implemented restrictions, such as requiring signatures for DXM sale, limiting quantities allowable for purchase, and requiring purchasers to be over the age of majority in their state. Due to its recreational use (and the fact users have be known to steal the product off shelves) many drug stores have moved DXM-containing medicine behind their counters, with some requiring the purchaser to be 18 years and over.

Watermelon Sizzurp “Lean”

When you are 17, and ‘cool with the crew of peeps that surround you’, you can send subtle messages understood only by them about what you are up too. If parents see it, they ignore it because it just doesn’t register. If naive newspaper columnists see it they misunderstand:

Despite the fixation with sex and girls, many of his postings reveal a childish side. He tweeted a picture of Scooby Doo gummy snacks and said he loved them so much he ate them constantly for lunch. – Miami Herald

First Time Robotrippin’ ….