Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee recounted a particularly low point in his drug addiction during the height of the band's success, detailing an incident where he and bassist Nikki Sixx injected Jack Daniels whiskey into their veins.
Lee shared the experience on the "Armchair Expert" podcast with Dax Shepard, explaining that the pair had run out of heroin in the early morning hours. "We were shooting Jack Daniels," Lee confessed. "At that moment, I went ‘OK, we could just drink this, but we’re shooting it. This is f—king wrong and somebody’s going to die.'"
The musician reflected on the prolonged struggles with addiction among himself and his bandmates during their time in the heavy metal band, noting instances where they would consume large quantities of sleeping pills before performing. "In 1989, we all decided we needed to go to rehab or someone was gonna die. We were zombies and people weren’t waking up," Lee stated.
Despite attending rehab in 1989 and attempts to remain sober, Lee acknowledged ongoing challenges with sobriety. He told Shepard that the longest continuous period he has been sober is approximately three years, admitting that he tends to celebrate milestones, which can sometimes contribute to relapse.
Lee also mentioned a more recent relapse in 2022, where he described going on a "motherf–king bender" during a two-week break from touring. He recalled becoming intoxicated, stripping naked, and posting explicit images online.
Lee's last public instance of seeking treatment for substance abuse was in 2019, following a significant relapse involving heavy alcohol consumption. He has openly discussed his ongoing battle with sobriety over the decades.