Brazilian Rapper Uses His Music to Reach Kids with the Truth About Drugs
Jorjão Oliveira uses his own experience with addiction as a powerful example to connect with kids and to convey the dangers of drugs, spreading the message of a drug-free life across the state of Mato Grosso.
Raised by a single mother, Oliveira grew up in the city of Cuiabá, Brazil, during the ʼ80s and ʼ90s surrounded by gangs and violence. While his mother always put food on the table, he remembers going through the garbage in the richest neighborhoods to look for toys for him and his brother.
To escape from that difficult life, Oliveira began using marijuana at 14. He was soon introduced to cocaine. Despite his mother’s attempts to intervene, he fell deeper into substance abuse and drug trafficking.
Oliveira began his music career with gangsta rap, writing lyrics that reflected his life on the streets and glorified crime. His rise to fame attracted police attention, leading to his arrest in 2003 for drug trafficking and theft. Prison only worsened his situation—it was there that he became addicted to crack.
After serving his time, Oliveira entered a rehab center, which saved his life. There, Oliveira turned his rap songs into positive messages, illustrating how drugs and crime are not the way to solve life’s problems. He began visiting schools to share his story and help kids make the decision to live drug-free using his rap songs and his own life experience.
“My life goal is to reach as many individuals as I can and, by doing so, reduce the number of people entering into the world of drug abuse.”
In 2018, Oliveira partnered with the Foundation for a Drug-Free World. He incorporated the Truth About Drugs program into his drug-prevention seminars, where he performs his rap songs, telling youth to stay off the path to drugs.
“The materials gave a boost to our actions, and I am very grateful to the Foundation for a Drug-Free World for the support,” says Oliveira. “My life goal is to reach as many individuals as I can and, by doing so, reduce the number of people entering into the world of drug abuse. Today, I continue to live the dream that drugs first stole from me—singing my raps, producing my videos and, most important of all, raising awareness in schools, which are the foundation of society.” Follow Oliveira’s full journey in his TV episode at Scientology.TV/JOliveira.
FACTS
DRUGS IN NUMBERS
What are the cold hard facts of drug abuse around the world? Here are the numbers:
292
MILLION
people use
drugs worldwide.
228
MILLION
people use cannabis around the world, which is the most widely used drug.
3.2
MILLION
people died in the last year due to alcohol and drug use.
3,708
TONS
of cocaine were produced in the last recorded year (2023).
50
PERCENT
of Americans aged 12 and older have used illicit drugs at least once.
SAVE YOUNG LIVES
Support the Foundation for a Drug-Free World and help protect young lives from the destructive effects of drugs. Your contributions enable us to make our educational materials available free of charge to schools, youth organizations and other groups and individuals. Your support helps empower people with the facts they need to live healthy, drug-free lives.
