Juice WRLD and Eminem Warn of Addiction on New Song ‘Lace It’

Two weeks after what would have been Juice WRLD’s 25th birthday — and a week after the four-year anniversary of his death — the rapper’s estate has shared a new song titled “Lace It,” featuring Eminem.

Both rappers warn of the dangers of addiction over their respective verses on the Benny Blanco-produced track, with Eminem — who survived his own battle with drugs — listing some of his musical peers that didn’t make it: Lil Peep, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Shock G, Pimp C, Prince, and Michael Jackson.

“I was lucky, my escape was narrow and due / Now think I take it for granted / That I’m still here, synthetic heroin you tried to kill me, then you murdered Jarad, didn’t you?,” Eminem rapped, a nod to Jarad “Juice WRLD” Higgins. “Addiction’s like a fuckin’ vicious cycle / Juice, we will forever miss you / To the younger generation, I ain’t lecturin’ you, but man just be careful when you…”

“Lace It” marks the second posthumous collaboration between Juice WRLD and Eminem: Just a month after Juice WRLD’s December 2019 death, a verse of his appeared on Eminem’s “Godzilla.” Benny Blanco and Juice WRLD worked on a handful of tracks together prior to Higgins’ death, including “Roses,” “Black & White,” “Graduation,” and the posthumous “Real Shit.”

In a statement, Higgins’ mother Carmela Wallace said of “Lace It,”  “I can recall Jarad playing Eminem’s music on repeat at home because he was a huge fan.  This is a bittersweet moment for me; I am happy that Jarad had a chance to make music with someone he admired and sad that he cannot be here to take in the moment; Jarad left us way too soon.”

Juice WRLD died of a drug-related seizure in December 2019 at the age of 21. Four months later, the rapper’s mother Carmela Wallace announced the establishment of the Live Free 999 Fund, which aims to support young people in their battles with anxiety, addiction, and depression.