Green Day leader struggled for years with drug addiction, until bizarre incident on festival stage changed everything
The successful trajectory of green Day was also marked by some setbacks. One of them involved an arduous battle between the singer and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong against alcoholism.
The origin of the problem, which also evolved into drug addiction, is directly related to the band. According to the musician, a severe case of stage fright led to addiction. It’s even hard to believe, since Armstrong He has increasingly proven himself to be an accomplished frontman.
In a podcast interview WTFin Marc Maron (via American Songwriter), Billie Joe shared some thoughts on the subject. He admitted that to this day he experiences stage fright — although, obviously, he deals with the issue better.
“I get huge stage fright. It’s that expectation of spending all day and getting ready to go on stage at a stadium or something.”
The situation, according to him, began after the resounding success of Dookie (1994), album that won the green Day to stardom. More specifically in the following album cycle, Insomniac(1995).
“I started on the album after Dookie. He was so nervous that I started drinking more before shows. I was like, ‘Hey, this works, I’m going to keep doing this.’ Then I realized: ‘wow, I still drink during and after the show too’. It just happened.”
The alcoholism of Billie Joe Armstrong
The relationship of Billie Joe Armstrong The drinking began to get out of control to the point where it was practically impossible to stop as soon as he realized it. He also commented on the personality change caused by alcohol.
“I’m fine after a few drinks, but then another guy starts to enter the scene. It’s not that angry guy: I start to turn into everyone’s annoying, drunken uncle.”
Evidently, the drunk version of Billie Joe it generated funny moments — he recognizes that. However, as he was unable to stop, this caused concern.
“It can get really funny, and it can get to the point where I can’t switch off and I’m drinking until 4 in the morning. There have been other ‘human trash can’ moments where other drugs were involved, but that’s it, I just want to keep going.”
Armstrong entered rehabilitation in 2012, after a complicated situation on the stage of iHeartRadio Festival, in Las Vegas. The band played “Basketcase”, one of their biggest hits, when the organizers signaled that they should end the performance in one minute. That’s when the frontman got angry and said, before breaking his guitar:
“Just one more f##king minute? Look at that f##king signal over there. One minute? I’ve been here since 1988 and you guys just give me a f##king minute?” I’m not that Justin bieber. You’ve got to be kidding. Oh! Now I have nothing left. I’ll show you what a minute means. God loves you all. We will be back.”
In a 2013 interview with Rolling Stone USAthe musician shared more reflections on his addiction.
“I couldn’t predict where I would end up at the end of the night. I could wake up in a strange house, on a couch. I couldn’t remember how I got there. It was a complete blackout. About the incident (at the iHeartRadio Festival), I remember few things. The next morning, I woke up and asked (wife) Adrienne: ‘was it really bad?’. And she told me: ‘it was really bad’. I called my manager. He said, ‘You’re going to get on a plane, go back to Oakland and go straight to a rehab facility, right away.’”
Source: Rollingstone
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
