He discussed how he once believed that artists had to live a life of excess, embracing alcohol, drugs, and chaotic behavior to produce great work. “I believed in the cultural myth of the alcoholic/addict, writer/musician/artist. That’s a great cultural myth, and some of my favorite writers were these masculine dudes like Hemingway and Hunter S. Thompson and [Charles] Bukowski like every other angst-riddled 20-year-old male or whatever. I love these writers, and I still do.”
After mimicking their lifestyles, Blythe realized he was far from embracing the true essence of artistry. “So I did all the things that these great writers did, like I drank and did a respectable amount of womanizing and even gotten some fist fights from time to time. I did all the stuff that those great writers were doing, except for the writing part, right? I’m practicing to become an artist.”
The frontman soon realized the damaging myth he had bought into—the belief that being an ‘artist’ required a self-destructive path. “So I bought into that cultural mythos of the damaged artist, the alcoholic artist, and it certainly that’s a fear, I think, amongst musicians, writers, artists of all sorts that become alcoholics or drug addicts, that when they stop doing whatever their preferred poison is, their creative abilities will abandon them. I have found it’s complete nonsense. In fact, I did not become a published author until I became sober.”
Blythe has been open about his sobriety journey. A few days ago, he recalled how Metallica helped him get sober during one of their tours together. “We had been on tour for about two years off and on with [Metallica], doing Europe and the States. They had had a few words with me and I went to them, I’m like, ‘Help me, I need some support, please. I can’t stop drinking.’ They’re like, ‘You’re going to be okay man,’ and showed me some brotherly love,” he told That Sober Guy Podcast.
“Then I went out on stage that night in front of 14,000 people and I was completely falling to pieces. I tell people my hair used to be long then and thank it was because I was weeping uncontrollably in between singing, and thank God we’re a heavy metal band cuz it’s just like and I’m like ‘Ahhh, say who gives a f*ck,’ screaming my lyrics. Then I’m like, ‘Oh my God my life, what the f*ck happened? Where am I?’ Just falling to pieces in front of 14,000 people. That was my first day sober and that was my first show sober. I spent my whole first month of sobriety on tour surrounded by free drugs and alcohol,” the rocker revealed.
Blythe is now celebrating 14 years of sobriety. He talked about his experiences in his new book, ‘Just Beyond The Light: Making Peace With The Wars Inside Our Head ‘Just Beyond The Light: Making Peace With The Wars Inside Our Head.’ Blythe has started his book tour, and it’s wrapping up on March 14 in San Diego.
