…Because someone obviously left their thinking caps on too damn long when they came up with this brilliant little gem that I discovered on Shaping Youth. A few facts on why this new product has my usually comfy panties in a big 'ol bunch:Sizzurp: Also called: drank, syrup, purple drank, purple, purp, oil, sip, the list goes on…
What is it: A mixture of Promethazine w/Codeine cough syrup, fruit flavored soda, and a jolly rancher candy for extra flavor and color.
How it's made: Put it all in a styrofoam cup and enjoy. The codeine is mainly responsible for the euphoria felt after drinking sizzurp. Promethazine causes motor skill impairment, lethargy, and extreme drowsiness. If it doesn't have promethazine, it ain't real sizzurp. --from Urban Dictionary
Of Note: A popular rapper has confessed on more than one occasion, his addiction to the beverage, and there have been rumors of him going to rehab to get de-sipped. Houston's DJ Screw allegedly died in 2000 from OD'ing on the stuff. Rapper Pimp C, also allegedly died from an overdose of sizzurp and a pre-exisiting sleep apnea condition
And NOW…we have Drank; a beverage designed to mimic the effects of the more potent sizzurp. Drank's "low and slow" effects stem from herbs like valerian root (which you can also get as a tea to help you sleep), rose hips and melatonin. From the company's press release:
From design to production, every aspect of this calming drink was inspired by today’s popular hip hop artists who embrace the much sought-after hip hop lifestyle that encourages people to capture a stress-free state of mind. (Village Voice)Stress free state of...whatever. Developing a product based on some homegrown hooch that has left a number of people dead or hospitalized is bad karma. It's like making crack candy or heroin juice that you drink with a candy syringe.
With an eye-catching can, cool urban design, grape-tastic flavor, and carbonated fizziness, how many kids are going to pick up this stuff to mimic their fav hip hop stars? And how soon before they realize that its herbal-y effects aren't bad... but adding some of the real stuff would be better?
2 comments:
That's for sure...I left a note to you back on our Shaping Youth blog that the folks from this site left a ping: www.drinkpurple.com
Normally, I'd toss it in akismet as product promo spam, but the fact that it was heavily promoted as an antioxidant 'wonder drink' on the View (complete w/Purple Spokeswoman Chaka Khan) adds to this wacky confusion, since there's clearly bound to be direct reverb with 'purple drank' and kids mixing up one with another, amidst emulation of their hip hop and celeb figures...
www.drinkpurple.com/PressReleases/ABCstheview.pdf
This is a classic example of how the herbal essence/health claims of all of these concoctions can create a tough road for kids who have no idea what they’re really drinking without serious label literacy!
The cans alone are knock-off dead ringers at first glance on the color palette...eesh.
Heads up one & all...
Thanks so much, Amy. It truly grows more confusing by the minute. Should we have the purple stuff that will make us vibrant and healthy, the purple stuff that will make us sleepy and carefree, or the purple stuff that will potentially send up to rehab? Decisions, decisions...
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