Boston, Addiction, The Town, 12 Years Sober | George Carroll “Slaine”

He taught himself to rap at nine years old, co-founded the rap supergroup La Coka Nostra, got discovered by Ben Affleck for Gone Baby Gone, and went on to act in The Town, Killing Them Softly, and Joker. What almost nobody saw was what was happening behind the scenes. For 23 years Slaine battled alcohol and addiction, through cocaine, OxyContin, and heroin, while chasing two careers most people told him were impossible. It cost him his marriage, his home, and nearly his life, until the only thing that finally outweighed the addiction was the fear of losing his son. In this conversation, Slaine opens up about growing up in the chaos of Boston, the drug culture that swallowed his generation, the record deal he was smart enough to turn down, auditioning drunk for Ben Affleck, hitting rock bottom as a father, the phone call outside a bar that saved his life, getting sober on March 3, 2014, and building Charles River Recovery, a treatment center that has helped more than 7,500 people. This is a conversation about identity, addiction, redemption, and giving it away to keep it. Thank you to our sponsors Our Title Sponsor ROKA: www.roka.com Code “RIDEOUT” Wild Roman: wildroman.com/rideout Code “RIDEOUT15” Ken’s book now available here: https://www.theothersideofhard.com/ Chapters (00:00) Meet Slaine (02:00) Boston Neighborhood Chaos (04:10) Childhood Trauma Unpacked (05:00) Fatherhood And Hindsight (08:23) First Drink Relief (09:42) Cocaine The Cheat Code (11:48) Eyewear Ad Break (13:20) Crabs In A Bucket (16:40) OxyContin Epidemic Boston (18:50) Film School Outsider (20:00) Boston Hardens You (24:50) ADHD As A Superpower (28:00) NYC Underground Comeup (31:31) Skincare Ad Break (34:48) The Deal He Refused (39:00) Squatting In A Warehouse (41:30) La Coka Nostra Born (44:00) 13,000 CDs Sold (46:00) Herald Story Affleck Calls (48:00) Drunk Audition For Affleck (51:56) Cleaned Up For Set (53:40) Prime Rib And A Warehouse (56:15) Boston Film Tax Credit (58:00) Vision Board Comes Alive (01:01:00) It All Hits At Once (01:15:45) Losing Everything (01:20:52) Failing As A Father (01:24:10) The Day It Stuck (01:26:57) The News That Should Have Broken Him (01:28:04) The Call Outside The Bar (01:30:00) Learning Humility (01:33:00) Uncle George (01:34:40) The One Belief (01:42:53) Building Charles River Recovery (01:48:20) Don’t Fit In A Box (01:51:15) How To Get Help (01:52:47) Farewell And Subscribe Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices