Mötley Crüe’s Nikki Sixx recently addressed questions about his relationship with WASP’s Blackie Lawless during one of his regular Q&A sessions, as reported by Axis.
The bassist’s response came after a fan specifically asked about their current friendship and whether any demos exist from their previous collaboration in the glam band London.
“Always thought highly of Blackie’s songwriting and vision but life got busy and we lost contact,” Sixx said. “Its not an easy business touring for years and being able to stay tight with people. Happy to WASP out playing.”
The comment sheds light on how the demanding nature of the music industry can affect personal relationships between musicians, even those who have worked together in the past.
Sixx’s recent comments reflect on a relationship that dates back to the early 1980s Los Angeles glam metal scene. The two musicians shared a brief but formative musical partnership that would ultimately shape both their careers.
Full in Bloom reported that Lawless treated the then-teenage Sixx like a younger brother before eventually firing him from their band. The two musicians came together when Lawless, struggling to assemble a group, placed an ad in The Recycler for a bassist. Sixx responded and joined alongside guitarist Lizzie Grey and drummer Dane Rage, forming a core trio that jammed and wrote music together.
The band was initially called Sister, with Lawless as frontman. WPDH noted that they rehearsed but never released material before Sixx’s dismissal. Sixx was fired after a record company passed on the band. He later viewed this as a pivotal “stroke of luck” that freed him to pursue more aggressive music, leading directly to Mötley Crüe’s “Too Fast for Love.”
After firing Sixx from Sister, Lawless formed W.A.S.P. in 1982, as Ultimate Guitar documented. He achieved massive success with their 1984 self-titled debut album featuring shock-rock hits like “I Wanna Be Somebody.” This contrasted sharply with Sixx’s punk-infused sound that would define Mötley Crüe.
Despite the professional split, Sixx has spoken fondly of Lawless in interviews, praising his talent and crediting the mentorship despite the firing. The bassist has noted how the early L.A. scene influences like Van Halen and Quiet Riot shaped both their musical directions, even as they pursued different paths in the metal world.
