Videos by According2HipHop
Gucci Mane and Keyshia Ka’oir kept it all the way real about what it’s like managing mental health behind the fame, the money, and the glow-up.
Earlier this month, the Atlanta rap icon dropped his third book, Episodes: The Diary of a Recovering Mad Man, where he revealed he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. The memoir peels back the layers on his life—his rise, the legal troubles, and what was really going on mentally through it all.
During a recent sit-down on The Breakfast Club (Oct. 20), Gucci and Keyshia got vulnerable about how they handle his episodes and what it takes to keep things balanced at home.
“I have a system,” Keyshia said matter-of-factly. “First thing I do, I delete Instagram. I delete everything. Even if I gotta change his password, I’m changing it because I don’t need the public to know he’shaving an episode.”
She explained that she can spot when something’s off before it even hits. “He don’t speak, he wants to be left alone, he don’t eat, he don’t sleep. And when he starts texting with a period after every word? I know it’s coming.”
Gucci admitted he wouldn’t even realize what was happening in the moment. “It’s like I’m in a psychosis,” he said. “I’d hear voices, feel like people were against me. It’s like I’m in a warped world.”
Keyshia described those moments as “scary” but said walking away was never an option. “It’s really sad because you’re seeing someone you don’t know,” she said. “He’d say things that were so mean and disrespectful, but I had to remind myself—I’m not talking to Gucci.”
The 1017 boss said his turning point came in 2020 during the pandemic, when he had a major episode that forced him to get serious about his mental health. At the time, Keyshia was pregnant with their son, Ice.
“After that, I was like, man, I gotta take care of myself for real,” Gucci said. “I don’t ever want to have an episode again. If I have to see a therapist or take medicine—whatever it takes, I’m doing it.”
He added that fatherhood made him think differently. “I don’t want to raise a family and then my mental health is gone. What if I have an episode I can’t come back from?”
These days, Gucci says he’s in a much better place—focused, grounded, and thankful. “I started to do the work, started seeking help,” he said. “And that changed everything.”
Now, with his family by his side and a renewed sense of peace, Gucci’s story is less about the chaos he survived and more about the growth that came after. He’s proof that healing doesn’t just happen in silence—it takes love, work, and the courage to face yourself head-on.
