Billy Idol revealed the unexpected substance that helped him quit heroin
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During a Monday, March 2 appearance on Club Random with Bill Maher, the "White Wedding" performer spoke about how smoking crack helped him wean off of the substance
Idol has previously revealed that he nearly died of a heroin overdose in London in 1984
Billy Idolrevealed the surprising substance that helped him kick his heroin habit.
During a Monday, March 2 appearance onClub Random with Bill Maher, the "White Wedding" performer spoke about how smoking crack helped him wean off of the substance.
"Once you're trying to get off heroin, what do you go to? You go to something else," said Idol, 70.
He continued, "I started smoking crack to get off heroin."
Bill Maherthen asked if he "really" did that, to which Idol replied, "It worked. It worked."
In his documentaryBilly Idol Should Be Dead,which premiered at Tribeca festival in June 2025, the "Eyes Without a Face" artist reflected on his near-fatal overdose in London in 1984 in the midst of the success of his second albumRebel Yell.
At the time, Idol had found major success in the United States but had decided to return to England as a sort of victory lap, "because I'd done it."
"I was coming back in triumph and I nearly ruined it," said Idol at the time. "We flew to London where we met a load of our pals that we knew. They had some of the strongest heroin. Everybody did a line or so and they all nodded out except for me and this mate of mine."
Idol recalled doing more of the heroin with his friend while the rest of the group passed out,
"I was basically dying. I was turning blue," he recalled. "So they put me in an ice cold bath and I remember them walking me around on the top of the building, on the roof."
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In the doc, the Grammy-nominated singer explains the allure of drugs during his hard-partying days, saying it was something that the rock scene really "embraced" at the time.Additionally in the documentary, Idol revealed that he ultimately gave up heroin for good after a wild trip to Bangkok that resulted in him and a friend racking up an estimated $75,000 in damages to a hotel. At the time, hisson Willem, who was born in 1988, was a baby.
Idol recalled passing out in an elevator at one point with the elevator doors opening and closing on him.
Inan exclusive interview with PEOPLE in May 2024, he revealed that he was "California sober."
He said he chose "not be a drug addict anymore" after a 1990 motorcycle accident he was involved inwhere he almost lost his leg.
"I really started to think I should try and go forward and not be a drug addict anymore and stuff like that," Idol recalled. "It took a long time, but gradually I did achieve some sort of discipline where I'm not really the same kind of guy I was in the '80s. I'm not the same drug addicted person."
He continued: "I mean, AA would say, 'You're always a drug addict.' And that may be true, but I don't do anything that much anymore. I got over it somehow. I was really lucky that I could get over it because a lot of people can't."
Once in a while, Idol said he can imbibe once in a while without it affecting him."I can have a glass of wine every now and again," he said. "I don't have to do nothing. But at the same time, I'm not the drug addict that I was in the peak '70s, '80s."
Billy Idol Should Be Deadwas released on Thursday, Feb. 26.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
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