Interview with Drugslab!

ЖЮ: Hi! You know that lately Drugslab has been blocked in Russia. What was your reaction when you heard about it?

Nellie: We are sad to hear that but we can’t see this in our statistics on YouTube. We still have got a lot of viewers from Russia. We understand that Russia has got a lot of problems with drugs use, but in our opinion this isn't the right way to solve drugs violations. The war on drugs in America wasn't a success and it will never be. We're smart creatures and the internet made us even smarter. I learned from my past that if youngsters want to experiment with drugs they will definitely try, but even youngsters don't want to become addicts or poisened. But don’t understand us wrong: we are not pro drugs, but we are pro-‘it's ​your own body and mind, use it the best way you can-types'. We think harm reduction and drug education is a better way to create a better life style for adolescents. There will always be temptations in life, but the most important thing is that we learn how to handle those temptations. 

ЖЮ: The access to the channel was prohibited for the propaganda of drug use. In your opinion, can your videos stimulate interest towards drugs?

Nellie: Our main goal is that we try drugs so you don't have to. We are very honest. If something about a drug is fun, we don’t lie about that. And If something is really nasty of scary, we say that as well. Some drugs can be life changing if you try it once, but the most important thing is that you know your limits in life. That’s the same with sex for example. We always tell the risks of a certain drug and we always tell our viewers that drug use is never without drugs. We just try to make the risks as small as possible. Fortunately a lot of people tell us that they won’t try certain drugs after they have seen the effects in our videos. We just want the world to speak freely about drugs. This so you can make your own choice if you want to try something. 

ЖЮ: Which government policy in terms of illegal substances you might consider optimal?

Production: We think the Dutch policy is good in terms of illegal substances. You can possess small amounts of drugs but you can’t deal in drugs yourself.

ЖЮ: Drugslab is funded by Dutch government. Could you tell more about how it was created: who came up with the idea? How did you become hosts?

Production: Drugslab is funded by BNN-VARA. And BNN-VARA is a Dutch public broadcaster. The idea for Drugslab came from Jelle Klumpenaar. He pitched the idea to BNN-VARA, the public broadcaster where Drugslab is a part of. BNN-VARA liked the idea and decided to make a YouTube-series of it. They decided to do Drugslab because BNN-VARA also has a television program called Spuiten & Slikken (translated as Shooting & Swallow). In this program we educate youngsters about sex and drugs on national television. Drugslab suited this program perfectly online. So Spuiten & Slikken is the label Drugslab is attached to. Nellie and Rens became hosts because Jelle Klumpenaar knew them from his former job at a company that works with online influencers. Bastiaan joined the annually Talentday of BNN-VARA.

ЖЮ: You post videos regularly — once a week. Have you ever been afraid of taking drugs so often? Have you experienced any health problems or addiction issues in this regard?

Nellie: We try drugs once a month per person. Sometimes also cacao or something. We are under medical care and we don't use drugs beside Drugslab. I really see the benefits of drugs, but I want to keep it special. Also I see and hear a lot of sad stories about drugs. Most of the time those sad stories come from people who weren't happy before they started to use drugs. I believe you have to try to create a happy life without any substances. A sober, happy life is the best. No risks and no dips. But drugs can add something extra. Something special or something you need to calm down or realize what life is about. Our brain is something special. Some people really learn from psychedelics or see the good things in life again when they tried ecstasy. 

So, we are not afraid, because we don't use drugs too often and when we do, at Drugslab, we experiment as safe as possible. You don't become an addict when you try drugs once and we don't make a habit of using drugs. If you start make it a habit, it could be dangerous, but we just experiment with it for once in a safe environment. Our main goal is to be a good host and educate people in the best and nicest way!          

ЖЮ: What is your personal attitude towards banned substances? Did you have a drug use experience before starting YouTube career? Do you take anything outside the shoot?

Nellie: ​Difficult question, because there are a lot of positive and negative sides of drug(use). We all tried ecstasy a few times before starting this job. ​That was a great experience, nevertheless we would never want to have that feeling every day. It would drive us​ crazy to have that feeling every day​. I think it would be better if the government did a lot more research towards drugs. And then maybe sell it just as they sell other drugs with a prescription, risks etc. And at the same time, you built a file. And, inform in an honest way about scary substances so people use their mind and don’t do these substances.  

ЖЮ: What drug was the most frightful for you to test? Have your experiments had heavy consequences?

Rens: ​Everytime I use a new drug, I’m excited and a bit nervous. With psychedelics, it’s very hard to know what to expect so that’s why I was most frightened for using Mushrooms. I was a bit scared for a moment but after all it went very well. Because we use it in a safe environment and with people we can trust and we feel safe with.

​Nellie: For me it was Salvia, legal here in the Netherlands, but I will never do that again! The world was imploding and I was stuck in the ground for a couple of minutes. It's a pretty harmless drug, but the feeling that I couldn't control my own mind anymore was scary. Maybe some people like that feeling, but I prefer controlling my own mind. ​

ЖЮ: Does the Drugslab project have a certain limit about the heaviness of drugs you take? Which substance you wouldn’t ever try? Heroin, for example?

B​astiaan:​ We will never try drus you will get addicted to after using it only one time. This is far too risky. Heroin, and Crystal Meth for example are often requested in the comments. But we will never do these drugs.

ЖЮ:  Could you share the funniest story that happened during the shooting? Considering your channel’s specifics, that might be quite a usual thing.

Bastiaan: I really like the alcohol episode in which I did karaoke. I sang a Russian song called Kathushan, it was so much fun.

Rens: I thought the funniest story that happened during Drugslab was that I ate a whole peyote cactus and nothing happened. I only ended up with a really bad taste in my mouth. I was disgusted. But we laughed a lot though.

​Nellie: I really had a good time after using magic mushrooms. I just couldn’t stop laughing. And Bastiaan was laughing so hard because of me. On set I had to laugh about everything. Jelle made a story about a walking cauliflower with arms and legs. This was really funny in my imagination. Absurd how our brain works.

ЖЮ: How do you choose the next «Guinea pig»? Maybe you draw straws or just choose a volunteer?

Nellie: Well that's a bit of a Drugslab secret! If subscribers ask for a specific drug, the Drugslab producers first check if it's possible, They check if it's an often used recreational drug in the Netherlands, if the risks aren't too high and if there's enough information about that drug. Then they ask the three of us who wants to try it. And if we all want to try it, we sometimes do rock, paper, scissors. 

ЖЮ: What do your parents, relatives and friends think about what you do?

Rens: ​When I first told my parents about my new job, my mother liked it. But my father was a bit in a shock because he was afraid that I would get addicted. But that’s why I make this program, to learn people more about drugs because some of them think Ecstasy and Heroin are the same, that’s also what my father thought. I also expected a lot of negative response from people because the whole world would see me using drugs. But instead of negative response, we got a lot of positive comments and messages from people saying: Thanks for making this program, it’s really useful.

ЖЮ: Sooner or later you will have tried all known drugs. What would you do next? Are you planning stuff like collaborations with other YouTubers or various famous people? 

Bastiaan: ​There still is a lot of fun stuff planned for our channel, but unfortunately we cannot tell you about it. So, keep an eye at our channel to find out!