“But like a lot of rap and R&B artists who appeal primarily to women, from Drake to Justin Bieber, G-Eazy rides the line between playing the bad boy and the sensitive alternative. He’s the one your mother warned you to stay away from, because he’ll only break your heart. But then he’s one of the only significant rappers to shout out this January’s Women’s March on Washington. This kind of hurts-so-good dichotomy is the stuff male sex symbols have historically been made of, but the relatively wide spectrum of G-Eazy’s approach to women made me reflect on his parentage. He was raised in liberal Berkeley by a single mom, an artist and teacher, whose long-term partner was a woman. In a story that has become public property since he rapped about it on “Everything Will Be OK,” his mother’s partner suffered from severe depression. It was Gerald, at 15 years old, who discovered her almost lifeless body just moments before a suicidal overdose claimed her. (more…)