'I couldn't do it if I wasn't clean' - Scribe writes his own future

Scribe is back with his first new music in years, and says music has helped him find the road back after addiction and jail time.  

'Non-Attachment,' his first single in more than a decade, was released this week, with a new video out today.

His upcoming album, with the working title Scribe Is Dead, will take an unflinching look at his life since his 2003 album The Crusader became one of Aotearoa's biggest hits.

Charlotte Ryan talked to Christchurch rapper Scribe - born Malo Ioane Luafutu - about addiction, his time in prison and having such a public life in the eye of the media.

"I feel relieved and I feel a little bit proud of myself to even put myself into a position to even release this song," he told Music 101.

"I couldn't do it if I wasn't clean."

The recent TVNZ documentary series Scribe: Return Of The Crusader offered a candid look at his life and recovery.

"People with the documentary have been watching my journey and it's been quite transparent, so I think this is just the natural fruits of being healthy."

'Non-Attachment' isn't just a single, it's a way of life, he says.

"I used to be attached to heaps of stuff, get attached to what someone says on the internet.

Watch Scribe's new video here:

"'Non-Attachment' is a massive step in my mindset.

"Now I'm in a position where I'm not attached to nothing. I'm not even attached to whether people like my song or buy it or even care.

"I'm not attached to the outcomes. And this is just a result of a lot of life that I've lived, and it's a very colourful life."

Scribe battled a methamphetamine addiction that ended with jail time and rehab, and those troubles inform his latest music.

"I've had many storms, and we all have many storms in life. The addiction itself was a storm.

"(The) storm got worse and worse and next minute, I'm in jail, and can it get any worse from there?

"So yeah, I guess now that I'm definitely through the storm, and it's amazing to be through the storm.

"At the worst part of it, I lost my family, I lost everything, I lost my reputation, humiliated. I lost my clean criminal record and, I don't know, I think it's a real trying time for any person."

Scribe said he's now "thankful to jail," where he spent four months.

"It was the first time in 15 years that I had a chance to just rest and just disconnect from everything, not by choice, because where I was we were in 23-hour lockdown.

"It was a blessing in disguise because I got out and I knew I didn't want to go back to where I was."

The music industry has changed a lot since Scribe's first hit in 2003, and he's now in his forties.

"It's scary being an older person now," he admits.

"There's a whole different way of trying to get your music to an audience.

"Audiences have the access to every piece of song and music in the world. Competing with everyone is a daunting idea."

Scribe's life has taken him from the heights of having The Crusader certified four times platinum to the lows of jail and addiction.

He says it's been hard work, but he's come through the other side.

"It was important for me to finish my own story. I'm talking about a real meth addiction, we're talking about every day.

"It's not something that was easy, it was damn near impossible but I knew I had to do it to show all the people that I'd met and knew through that underworld."

Finishing his new song and video was a goal for him.

"I've never given up on myself. Definitely second-guessed myself, but never given up on me."

He said he hopes his message and his recovery will resonate with all audiences, as he returns to the music scene.

"Music is such a powerful tool, and I just want to use it for hope."