Billie Joe on the cover of Rolling Stone "The Road Back From Hell"

[.Holly]

And both the AI and 21st CB tours were heavily influenced by drugs and alcohol. He said in the interview that it got incredibly bad during the 21st CB tour...saying that he had several extreme meltdowns. Don't get me wrong, I don't doubt his ability to pull off being the rock star that he is. I think this new tour will be just as good, if not better than all the previous ones. What I am saying is that I think you guys are kidding yourselves if you think it was just a few isolated incidents. The interview made it very clear that it was a constant, everyday thing. People who are detoxing from alcohol are on siezure watch unless they have years of abuse behind them.

Well from reading the article I don't think anyone could kid themselves these were isolated incidents. I'm just saying he can't have lived every rock star moment drunk because they've been so huge since 2004.

[HolyHandGrenade]

But there IS no solid evidence, and there never will be. We don't know the band personally, and to be placing any kind of blame or negativity on anybody for BILLIE'S problems is ALWAYS going to be completely inappropriate. As several others have said, alcohol and drug addictions are no joke, and it's not that easy to just help someone that's struggling. It's extremely offensive that people think that it's easy to help somebody with an addiction.

I just meant that if there was evidence it would be relevant to the discussion. Once again, I'm not blaming anyone.

[DannyDirnt]

Well from reading the article I don't think anyone could kid themselves these were isolated incidents. I'm just saying he can't have lived every rock star moment drunk because they've been so huge since 2004.

1994*

[stories and songs]

You know, this is one of those things that gets to be too much when overanalyzing it. I find myself doing it, and honestly all it does is make me feel like crap about the whole situation when the emphasis should be on the fact that he's doing well now and committed to being healthy. THAT is the point. We can't change what happened in the past or how things went down. And I feel myself getting anxious in questioning things about eight years that I've been a fan of this band the more I think about it. That's how I am, I over think things. I'm sure I'm not the only one. But truly, it is the wrong way to be looking at this article, and I'm trying not to look at it in that light. The longer I have to take all the information in, though, the worse it gets. And I hate that. I'm really, really proud of Billie's accomplishment and I don't want that to be overshadowed by questioning what he did or didn't do while drunk.

[Tommy's Tonsils]

I just meant that if there was evidence it would be relevant to the discussion. Once again, I'm not blaming anyone.

Right, but there isn't any evidence, so it's not relevant, which is why people need to stop posting stupid and offensive comments. Which is what my point is.

(I'm not trying to come off rude, but there's absolutely no defense for the way certain members of this forum are conducting themselves in this thread.)

[Schlappy]

Although I don't blame Mike, Tre, and Adrienne, where else will this ever get discussed? This thread is where we're supposed to be talking about what might have been going on. If there is solid evidence blaming them, then it's a valid argument and not inappropriate.

I think its fair to say that none of us have any clue. we dont really know anything about his life and we arent a part of it. Some people (including me probably) are saying things that we really have no right to assume or make deductions about. It's fine to have a discussion but we just have to remember that all we have is this little interview, we know nothing about what billie and his family/ friends have gone through

[Dirty Rotten Bastard]

No...but that was the breaking point. Did you read the article? He said that all that cool stuff in the shows was the result of alcohol. In 2010 he said that the band is so good live because of alcohol. I'm not saying that it defines their ability to put on a good show, I'm saying that Billie being fucked up at shows (sometimes not as bad as others) has been a regular occurance for many years.

He said that alcohol gave him the confidence to do all the 'cool stuff' not that it was the reason why he did it. He's not going to get on the stage in a few weeks and go 'oh my god, I'm sober, no more clapping for me'. He finally found the confidence around 1997, if you think back to then, he was young and had been thrown straight into all the fame. He was still trying to prove himself as an artist and work out what he was doing. I'm sure he knows what makes a good show and what doesn't. He's not going to play a show sober and suddenly forget every single thing that he's ever done drunk. He knows how to work a crowd.

[Ryan]

Well from reading the article I don't think anyone could kid themselves these were isolated incidents. I'm just saying he can't have lived every rock star moment drunk because they've been so huge since 2004.

I disagree, but there is no telling which one of us is correct. Haha. All I know is that when you're an addict (to the point where you need rehab and scare your best friends) it is because your addiction is an everyday occurance. Everything you do is about getting that next fix or easing whatever pain you're going through. It doesn't pick and choose when it happens...it is part of your life. And in the interview he said that it started in '97. So I'm going by that statement as well as what I know about addicition.

[SumDay]

After reading this, I don't think I'll never listen to Green Day the same again.

But now I'm even more pumped for the new tour, 'cause of the "new/normal" Billie

[Ryan]

He said that alcohol gave him the confidence to do all the 'cool stuff' not that it was the reason why he did it. He's not going to get on the stage in a few weeks and go 'oh my god, I'm sober, no more clapping for me'. He finally found the confidence around 1997, if you think back to then, he was young and had been thrown straight into all the fame. He was still trying to prove himself as an artist and work out what he was doing. I'm sure he knows what makes a good show and what doesn't. He's not going to play a show sober and suddenly forget every single thing that he's ever done drunk. He knows how to work a crowd.

I agree that he still knows how to do all that shit. But even to this day he talks about how nervous he is before going on stage. That's one of the reasons he has been a constant drinker since '97. The alcohol gave him the courage to do all those things that he knew he wanted to do but couldn't bring himself to do. So what happens when you take away the only thing that gives him the courage to do that? Who knows? Like I said, I have total confidence in Billie and I've been a diehard fan since '94. All I'm saying is that he's going to need to find something new to give him that courage.

[Guest]

Jesus fucking Christ, Billie is 41 years of age. Yes he has friends and family, but he also has to shoulder the blame for his actions, which he has done in the interview. He's accepted that he fucked up, him alone. Blaming people around him for not helping him earlier is fucking ridiculous, and plain ignorant.

End of discussion.

[HolyHandGrenade]

All I'm saying is that he's going to need to find something new to give him that courage.

Too bad Felix Felicis doesn't exist

[gerardsangel4977]

Do you think that now Billie will be less crazy? I mean, like more quiet and shy? I wonder how it will be to see that! It's kind of like seeing 'the real Billie' onstage!

Tbh, I always saw BIllie as being on the quiet side. Offstage, at least.

No...but that was the breaking point. Did you read the article? He said that all that cool stuff in the shows was the result of alcohol. In 2010 he said that the band is so good live because of alcohol. I'm not saying that it defines their ability to put on a good show, I'm saying that Billie being fucked up at shows (sometimes not as bad as others) has been a regular occurance for many years.

The alcohol may have been the reason he started doing tthose things, but they're all such regular, choreographed parts of Green Day's shows at this point that it's hard to believe he'll just drop all of it now that he's sober. At most, I'd say that he may not end up crowd-surfing as much or doing some of the other, crazier things we've seen him do at the club shows that *were* more spontaneous.

[Dirty Rotten Bastard]

I agree that he still knows how to do all that shit. But even to this day he talks about how nervous he is before going on stage. That's one of the reasons he has been a constant drinker since '97. The alcohol gave him the courage to do all those things that he knew he wanted to do but couldn't bring himself to do. So what happens when you take away the only thing that gives him the courage to do that? Who knows? Like I said, I have total confidence in Billie and I've been a diehard fan since '94. All I'm saying is that he's going to need to find something new to give him that courage.

I think they all get nervous before going on stage. Even now. Everyone's going to be there for him, I'm sure once he gets on stage he'll get into the swing of things again, he'll be fine.

Anyway, he's got his root beer.

All jokes aside though, I'm sure they will all work something out. Can't wait to see how this tour actually pans out.

[joeysturkeyhead]

It's not Mike's fault, it's not Tré's fault and it's not Adrienne's fault, I don't think anyone here would have handled it much better than they did, you can tell a person like a thousand times to get stop what they're doing or say that they should get help but the person needs to realize it themselves. It's not Billie's fault either, he's gone through a lot and unfortunately it's not unusual to end up in his state. Sometimes I feel like people should try to imagine his situation and the situation for people around him, it's not an easy to do but it's allways worth a shot before saying stupid things about it that doesn't make sense at all.

[The Grohl]

God, this thread is starting to look like the one that opened when he first announced he was getting treatment

[Schlappy]

I agree that he still knows how to do all that shit. But even to this day he talks about how nervous he is before going on stage. That's one of the reasons he has been a constant drinker since '97. The alcohol gave him the courage to do all those things that he knew he wanted to do but couldn't bring himself to do. So what happens when you take away the only thing that gives him the courage to do that? Who knows? Like I said, I have total confidence in Billie and I've been a diehard fan since '94. All I'm saying is that he's going to need to find something new to give him that courage.

didnt he say he's attempted to quite a few times? i think "a constant drinker since 97" is a bit of jumping to conclusions. Also, maybe he just likes being drunk... i doubt he only drank to give him courage. it's a lot deeper than that, or not as deep. I'm more uneasy about their first performance because its been awhile not because he'll be sober. Billie knows how to perform.

[Guest]

This thread is getting very stupid again.

Billie's job is Green Day. Playing live shows, making albums, doing publicity. He's not some 20 year old thrust into the limelight, throwing back beers because all of a sudden he's playing shows to 2,000 people instead of 200. He's a hugely successful rockstar who's been at the top of his game for almost 20 years. He'll be fine without the booze.

He's a pro, for fuck sake.

[HolyHandGrenade]

Now I can see crystal clear why they announced smaller club shows. Even if it would have been nice for me to have bragging rights about going to the first concert on the tour, there is NO WAY Billie would be able to handle it without working his way up first.

To Ceadog: Yes, he'll be fine but not instantly.

[Ryan]

didnt he say he's attempted to quite a few times? i think "a constant drinker since 97" is a bit of jumping to conclusions. Also, maybe he just likes being drunk... i doubt he only drank to give him courage. it's a lot deeper than that, or not as deep. I'm more uneasy about their first performance because its been awhile not because he'll be sober. Billie knows how to perform.

I agree that he probably just liked being drunk, and the result was that he had the courage to do shit that he had wanted to do all along. And he think he said that there were times when he knew it was an issue and that he should stop, but that it never happened because he would have one drink that he remembered before blacking out. The story of the day of iHeart was very telling to me. He knew that he needed to control/limit himself. He met Jason White for lunch, Jason was having a glass of wine with his lunch, Billie knew he shouldn't, but he had one glass of wine that he remembers prior to blacking out and vaguely popping back into consciouness during the ride to the venue, backstage, etc.

[SumDay]

Why do you keep talking about this "it's him/her fault!!11" shit?

Let's just be happy that Billie is back

Just kdding, but we should really stop searching the person who fucked it all up. We don't know that much about their lifes, so we don't have the permission to talk about them.

And yeha, I think he will be kinda like "shy" onstage now, but that's not the problem. I'm pretty sure a lot of people are going to say shit like "He's such a non-punk pussy" or some other things. But that doesn't matter. I think it's better to have a shy band than a band who fucks up their lifes.

[HolyHandGrenade]

And yeha, I think he will be kinda like "shy" onstage now, but that's not the problem. I'm pretty sure a lot of people are going to say shit like "He's such a non-punk pussy" or some other things. But that doesn't matter. I think it's better to have a shy band than a band who fucks up their lifes.

A "shy" Green Day is still 10x rowdier than most other bands

[stories and songs]

Honestly guys - when Billie got REALLY drunk, he did and said some really stupid things on stage. Things that, even being a huge fan and someone who adores him, made me really unhappy or uncomfortable at the time. I 100% will not miss that person.

I also agree with whoever said he is on the quieter side when offstage. Particularly in recent years. I mean, he's outspoken and yes, he is certainly a talker, but he is most definitely not a loud-mouth by any means.

It's hard, knowing how much has been going on behind the scenes. But also, even though we didn't know about the pills, are we REALLY surprised about the drinking? No. I can't imagine anyone here is. He talked about getting drunk very often. He had a few too many drunken tales. And I'm not saying that judgmentally, but he did talk about it casually and often. He went off on like a month long bender to get inspiration for American Idiot. These are things that he has talked about openly. Maybe we never pieced together just how much of an issue it was, but it isn't surprising.

Its overwhelming to get al of this information, but it all brought Billie to right now, in a happy and healthy place in his life. That is a very, very good thing, no matter what way you look at it.

[MistressA]

Jesus fucking Christ, Billie is 41 years of age. Yes he has friends and family, but he also has to shoulder the blame for his actions, which he has done in the interview. He's accepted that he fucked up, him alone. Blaming people around him for not helping him earlier is fucking ridiculous, and plain ignorant.

End of discussion.

Well said. I have lived around a chronic alcoholic and it doesn't matter what help/support/advice you give, or how much you love and adore them, they have to see the destruction for themselves. It can honestly tear relationships apart and Billie is very lucky to have maintained his relationships. And I think he realises this. Although he has always remained quite a private person regarding his marriage and children I feel that in this interview he has partially sacrificed this as he feels he wants to explain and talk about the issues.

[Schlappy]

I agree that he probably just liked being drunk, and the result was that he had the courage to do shit that he had wanted to do all along.

are you his therapist or what? haha how do you figure? i dont think he wanted a lot of things to happen...

Anyway i find it hard to believe that some people are convinced that the core of billies performance abilities lies in booze without which he'll be lost. This is what he does