Steven Tyler: I Didn't Walk This Way...Oh Wait, Yes I Did
Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler is finally admitting the real reason why he went to rehab...after saying he needed a "safe environment" to recover from foot surgery, it turns out that wasn't all he needed:
"To have your feet done, to have your leg done, you have to be on narcotics," Tyler told The Associated Press on Friday. "You have to be on sleep aids at night. I don't know about Joe (Perry) but I was off and running and I didn't like the me that was me."Tyler released a statement in late May saying he checked into a rehab facility in search of a "safe environment" to recover from several foot surgeries and physical therapy. Tyler said the procedures were to correct longtime foot injuries resulting from his physical performances as the singer for the blues-rock band.
"This was a month ago, so I just put the brakes on and checked into detox and just pulled the plug on all of it," he told the AP on Friday night at the Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square, where he and bandmates were promoting "Guitar Hero 3: Aerosmith."
Steven completed rehab in 1986, shortly before the band got their second wind which still continues today.
I don't get it. This is a very successful singer who enjoys fame all across the globe. He knows that he has many fans, young and old, who look up to him and enjoy his music. So why not just be honest and tell the truth from the get-go? Not like some of us didn't figure it out for ourselves...but that makes it worse, to be shown up in your half-truth after the fact.
It takes a lot of guts to go to rehab, and he should know that the eyes of his fans would be on him. He could have not said anything, gone quietly away, and then come back and said, "Hey, I'm sorry I disappeared for a while, but I had a problem with painkillers I had to take care of, and I did...and if I can do it, so can you." He could have been an inspiration to others struggling with dependency. Maybe he should start performing in flip-flops.
Like so many who don't tell the truth about why they went to rehab, he's sending out the message that there's something wrong with getting help for one's addictions.
I can't lay all the blame on Steven, though...he undoubtedly got horrible advice from his publicist.
Regardless, I wish him all the best in his continued recovery.
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