In a video interview with Rolling Stone, the actor reflected on songs that have played an important role in his life. When Jackson’s 1993 hit came up, McConaughey recalled that it was connected to one particularly memorable night.
“What a cool, groovy little tune,” he said. “It’s also the reason I quit smoking weed.”
McConaughey said the experience happened around the time he began encountering much stronger marijuana. He described the newer, hydroponically grown weed as dramatically more potent than what he had used before.
At the time, he was heading to his own birthday party. A friend gave him a joint and told him it was “super fun.” McConaughey took a hit while sitting in his car before going inside the club.
But the effects were far stronger than he expected.
“I listened to Janet Jackson’s ‘That’s the Way Love Goes’ 24 times in a row,” he recalled.
By the time he finally got out of the car and went into the club, the party was already over.
“No one was in there,” he said. “They’d all left.”
McConaughey joked that, at the time, listening to the song repeatedly seemed more important than attending his own birthday celebration. While he still enjoys Jackson’s song, the experience changed his relationship with marijuana.
“Love the song, didn’t love the weed,” he said.
The actor also discussed the important role music plays in his approach to acting. For each character, McConaughey said he creates playlists based on the music he imagines the character would listen to.
He learned the technique while working with director Richard Linklater on “Dazed & Confused.” Linklater gave the cast cassette tapes containing music he believed their characters would listen to.
McConaughey said the approach helped him understand the character without being given explicit instructions.
“Music doesn’t tell you what to do,” he explained. “But you put ’em in a place, you get a sense of space and place.”
For McConaughey, music is less about explaining a character and more about finding the right mood, rhythm and mindset. That approach continues to influence his performances, including his role as a musician and beekeeper in the new film “The Rivals of Amziah King.”
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