LOSE
LOSE RESPECT FROM SOME OF THE BAND MEMBERS. THIS BAND'S ABOUT TO FALL APART.
THERE WASN'T GOING TO BE A BLUE
AND THERE MIGHT NOT BE A JUSTIN
ANYMORE. YOU JUST WATCH A CLIP
FROM A DOCUMENTARY CALLED GET
BACK UP. IT'S THE LAST SEVEN
YEARS OF THE LIFE OF LEAD
SINGER BLUE OCTOBER. JUSTIN
FIRST FELT HE SHARES HIS LIFE
BECAUSE HE WANTS YOU TO KNOW
ABOUT HIS BATTLE WITH ADDICTION
AND MENTAL ILLNESS AND HOW HE
GOT TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT.
LET'S BRING INTO OUR SHOW THIS
MORNING. JUSTIN, FIRST OF ALL,
GOOD MORNING. GOOD MORNING. HOW
ARE YOU? I'M DOING GREAT. FIRST
OF ALL AND MOST IMPORTANTLY HOW
ARE YOU? I'M AWESOME LIKE I. SO
GOOD. IT'S CRAZY. I FEEL MORE
BLESSED EVERY SINGLE DAY. SO
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR HAVING
ME ON THE SHOW. I'M TRULY
HONORED THAT YOU WOULD SPEND
YOUR TIME WITH ME. YOU TALK
ABOUT THE DOCUMENTARY WHICH WAS
SHOT OVER THE COURSE OF SEVEN
YEARS AND IT WAS A VERY RAW AND
REAL LOOK AT YOUR LIFE. LET'S
START KIND OF BACK AT
THE BEGINNING. WHEN DID YOU
FIRST REALIZE THAT YOU WERE
STRUGGLING WITH MENTAL ILLNESS
THAT ULTIMATELY TURNED INTO
ADDICTION? I'VE ALWAYS KNOWN
THAT I HAD DEPRESSION LIKE
SEVERE DEPRESSION AND I'VE
ALWAYS BEEN ON MEDICATION FOR
IT. IT'S JUST WHEN I STARTED
MIXING DRUGS AND ALCOHOL TO
THINK THAT IT SOLVED
THE PROBLEM FOR FOR A TEMPORARY
SOLUTION TO A PERMANENT
PROBLEM. IT TOOK MY WIFE, MY
MOM, MY DAD AND THE BAND AND
SOME PEOPLE IN THE MUSIC
INDUSTRY TO REALLY PUT IT IN MY
FACE THAT THIS WAS A HUGE
PROBLEM IN EUROPE. ALWAYS BEEN.
YOU'RE NOT DOING WELL. SO EIGHT
YEARS AGO I DECIDED TO MAKE A
CHANGE IN MY LIFE AND IT'S
THE BEST DECISION I EVER MADE.
AND THAT WAS TO GET SOBER AND
THEN WITH A CLEAN HEAD ATTACK
THE DEPRESSION AND REALLY SET
FIND OUT WHAT WAS WRONG WITH
ME. AND AND I TRULY BELIEVE
THAT THAT'S THE ONLY WAY THAT I
COULD BE IN SUCH A PEACEFUL
PLACE TODAY IS BY GETTING CLEAN
SOBER FIRST. SO THEN I COULD
LOOK AT DEPRESSION AND MENTAL
ILLNESS WITH IT WITH A CLEAN
BRAIN. LET'S ROCK BOTTOM MOMENT
FOR YOU. WERE YOU DECIDED? I
HAVE NO OTHER OPTION BUT
SOBRIETY. MY KIDS MY KIDS I WAS
I HAD ONE ON THE WAY AND MY
WIFE SITTING DOWN AND SAYING
THAT SHE WAS GOING TO LEAVE AND
I WOULD NEVER SEE MY DAUGHTER
IF I DIDN'T GET CLEAN AND THAT
WAS VERY HARD FOR HER TO SAY
BECAUSE SHE KNEW HOW MUCH I
LOVED MY OTHER CHILD. BUT BUT
IT WAS THAT IT WAS TOUGH LOVE
IS WHAT IT REALLY WAS. IT WAS
MY MY PARENTS SAYING THAT
THEY'RE NO LONGER GOING TO
SPEAK TO ME. IT'S THE BAND
SAYING THE BAND'S OVER. IT'S MY
MANAGEMENT SAYING WE'RE NO
LONGER GOING TO MANAGE YOU.
IT'S WHEN PEOPLE REALLY TOLD ME
THAT I'M GOING TO BE ALONE AND
THEY MEANT IT. THAT'S WHAT WAS
MY ROCK. BUT THAT WAS MY ROCK
BOTTOM. IF THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN
AN ENABLER THEY WOULD HAVE
STILL KEPT COMING AROUND. I
WOULDN'T BE CLEAN TODAY
TACKLING SOBRIETY IS ONE
COMPONENT. ONE THING THAT YOU
WERE ABLE TO SUCCESSFULLY WORK
YOUR WAY THROUGH BUT THEN YOU
STILL HAD TO DEAL WITH
THE DEPRESSION ON TOP OF THAT.
THAT'S SOMETHING A LOT OF
PEOPLE CAN RELATE TO RIGHT NOW.
JUSTIN, IS THERE ANY ADVICE YOU
COULD SHARE FOR PEOPLE WHO
MIGHT BE DEALING WITH
DEPRESSION? THIS IS MY ADVICE
STRAIGHT UP DON'T FUEL
THE FLAME. THAT MEANS ALCOHOL,
DRUGS, EVEN MARIJUANA. I KNOW
PEOPLE THINK THAT IT'S NOT A
DRUG BUT FOR PEOPLE WITH
DEPRESSION IT DON'T FUEL
THE FLAME, DON'T FEEL
THE FLAME. GIVE YOURSELF A GOOD
MONTH WITHOUT ANY TOXINS,
WITHOUT ANY POISONS IN YOUR
SYSTEM THEN GO WALKING. GO
EXERCISE, GET OUTSIDE, GET ON
THE RIGHT MEDICATION. GO SEE A
THERAPIST. TAKE YOUR MEDICATION
EVERY DAY AND YOU'LL NOTICE
THAT YOUR BRAIN IS AT LEAST
STARTING TO CLEAR UP. YOU'RE NO
LONGER POLLUTING WHAT IS
ALREADY THERE AND YOU CAN START
PUTTING YOUR DEPRESSION OUT IN
FRONT OF YOU AND GOING THIS IS
WHAT I CAN SOLVE. THIS IS WHAT
I CAN'T HANDLE, THIS IS WHAT I
CAN HANDLE. AND THEN THE REST
YOU TAKE TO A DOCTOR AND YOU
SERIOUSLY FOCUS ON IT AND MAKE
IT YOUR FIRST PRIORITY STAYING
CLEAN DON'T POLLUTE YOUR SYSTEM
LIVE CLEAN LIVE ACTIVE AND
SURROUND YOURSELF WITH POSITIVE
PEOPLE YOU'VE PERSONALLY
WRITTEN OVER 600 SONGS MANY OF
THEM WITH THE BLUE OCTOBER. A
LOT OF THOSE SONGS JUST IN WERE
WRITTEN IN THE DEPTHS OF YOUR
ADDICTION AND YOUR MENTAL
ILLNESS AND WHAT WAS VERY
TROUBLING FOR YOU WAS TURNING
OUT TO BE WONDERFUL MUSIC WAS
SELLING REALLY FAST. I KNOW
THIS IS AN ODD QUESTION BUT DO
YOU FIND IT DIFFICULT TO
CONTINUE TO WRITE PASSIONATE
MUSIC ON THIS SIDE OF
EVERYTHING? I WAS WRITING SONGS
AND THE ONLY THING I WOULD
WRITE MY SONGS ABOUT THOSE FOUR
HUNDRED AND FIFTY SOMETHING
SONGS I'D WRITTEN BEFORE WERE
ABOUT ONE THING ME AND HOW HARD
LIFE WAS AND THERE'S ONLY SO
LONG SOMEBODY WANTS TO LISTEN
TO SOMEONE COMPLAIN ABOUT HOW
HARD THEIR LIFE IS BEFORE THEY
GO CAN'T HAVE IT ANYMORE. DO
SOMETHING ABOUT IT. STOP BEING
LAZY. SO WHEN I GOT SOBER GUESS
WHAT I FOUND THAT I HAD A
NATURAL GOD GIVEN CRAFT THAT I
COULD PERFECT STUDY ON LEARN
FROM OTHERS, WORK WITH OTHERS
AND BECOME EVEN BETTER THAN I
WAS BEFORE AND WRITE ABOUT NOT
JUST ME, WRITE ABOUT LOVE LOST
PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS, PEACE,
CONFIDENCE THE SMELL OF RAIN,
THE OCEAN AND HOW IT FEELS. MY
FIRST BORN ALL OF THESE
BEAUTIFUL THINGS WERE OUT THERE
AND THEY'RE NOT ABOUT ME
ANYMORE WHICH IS ONE OF
THE MOST AMAZING THINGS. IT'S
I'M INSPIRED BY EVERY SINGLE
THING IN THIS WORLD BECAUSE I'M
ALLOWED TO SEE IT THESE DAYS
BECAUSE I STAY SOBER AND I STAY
POSITIVE AND I JUST LOOK FOR
THE MIRACLES PEOPLE TAKE OUT
THIS DOCUMENTARY AND I KNOW
THAT YOU'RE ALSO OPENING
YOURSELF UP TO QUESTION AND
ANSWER SESSIONS WITH VIEWERS.
IT'S PRETTY COOL. MAY 21ST ON
GET BACK UP DOC TV IT'S A
PLATFORM THAT WE SET UP SO I
WOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN ABLE TO
DO THIS SOBER. WE SET UP A
PLATFORM A STREAMING PLATFORM
LIKE WHAT? DURING THIS TIME
DURING THIS PANDEMIC SO PEOPLE
CAN GO WATCH THIS ON GET BACK
UP TV ON MAY 21ST. AND IT'S
THE PREMIERE. THEY CAN WATCH IT
FROM THEIR HOUSE AND THEN AFTER
THE DOCUMENTARY I'M GOING TO
POP UP BELOW WITH POPCORN
GREASE ALL OVER MY FACE OR
SOMETHING AND I'M GOING TO
ANSWER QUESTIONS FROM PEOPLE
AND IT'S GOING TO BE PROBABLY
ONE OF THE COOLEST THINGS I'VE
EVER BEEN A PART DIRECTOR NOORY
NEVINS REALLY TOOK THIS PIECE
AND DIDN'T LET ME TOUCH IT SO
IT WOULD BE RAW. HE DIDN'T LET
ME MAKE MYSELF LOOK PRETTY. HE
LET IT SPEAK THROUGH THE EYES
OF RECOVERY AND SPIRITUALITY
AND POSITIVITY. AND I'M SO
EXCITED AS A PERSON FOUND FROM
BLUE OCTOBER. THANK YOU SO MUCH
FOR