Wu-Tang member GZA recently revealed he no longer smokes marijuana (which explains why he only forgot about one Liquid Swords track at a recent gig). But he’s not the first MC to say au revoir to the wacky tabacky. How will his choice stand up against these other hip-hop swear-offs?

GZA
With the Weed: As a founding member of the Wu-Tang Clan, GZA layed down some of the best rhymes on the group’s albums as well as some of the most consistent solo work in hip-hop. He also had a ridiculously nutty cameo (along with Bill Murray and fellow Wu member RZA) in Jim Jarmusch’s Coffee and Cigarettes.
The Announcement: In a recent interview, GZA announced he has completely given up smoking herb to become more productive.
Post Ganja: Yet to be seen, though GZA says his previous attempt to clean up was undone by a tour. “In certain towns, people would just hand you weed,” he says. The Clan are currently on the road for their latest album 8 Diagrams.

Snoop Dogg
With the Weed: The Dr. Dre-aided, Death Row-funded Snoop Dogg rose from being a charming sideman to one of the biggest MCs of all time, as well as a multi-platform mogul with his own clothing line, skateboards, hot dogs and of course, reality show.
The Announcement: In 2002, Snoop publicly liberated himself from marijuana because he was coaching a youth football team.
Post Ganja: One of Snoop’s biggest-selling albums, Paid the Cost to Be the Boss, was recorded during his sober period, and he also launched the criminally underrated Doggy Fizzle Televizzle while not on the smoke. However, Snoop was arrested twice in the fall of 2006 for marijuana possession and appears to be back off the weed wagon.

J-Rock
With the Weed: As part of the British hip-hop/R&B collective Big Brovaz, J-Rock laid down chart-topping rhymes about Friends on his way to becoming one of the biggest rappers in the U.K.
The Announcement: In 2006, J-Rock launched a TV show in England called Giving Up the Weed, in which he would go without smoking grass for thirty days after a fourteen-year habit.
Post Ganja: After the cameras turned off, Rock kept it up and entered into a staggering period of productivity: He appeared in a play in London, acted in a movie and got Big Brovaz back together to record an album for Universal.

Rev Run
With the Weed: Run made his name as one-third of the seminal hip-hop group Run-DMC, the first rap act to have an album in the top ten and crossover to pop success.
The Announcement: Run denounced weed around 1991, frowning on the drug’s false sense of security.
Post Ganja: Run became an ordained minister in 1997, put out a solo album in 2004 and became the star of the hit MTV reality series Run’s House in 2005.