Rascal Flatts' Joe Don Rooney Explains His Decision to Become Sober
Rascal Flatts lead guitarist Joe Don Rooney is opening up about his life.
The 48-year-old musician shared a candid post on social media apologizing to fans for his absence.
“It’s actually been a couple years since I’ve engaged with fans and friends on Twitter (now X) or Instagram,” he wrote.
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“But I figured today, at the beginning of this brand new year 2024, would be a good day to send a message out to the world.”
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“First off, I am alive!” he wrote, clearing up “rumors and opinions” and saying he is “finally healthy and ready for the world.”
He went on to say that at 4 a.m. on Sept. 9, 2021, he “ran square into a tree and about killed myself.”
“I was drunk and I was so far gone with my life – I was completely out of control and finished with trying to fight the fears, depression and anxieties that had spun me out in a way I’ve never experienced before.”
“And as they say in AA and treatment, it’s a progressive disease. I am living proof that the progressive nature of drinking can really ratchet up and as I grew older as an adult, my drinking grew worse,” he continued.
He went on to discuss pain in his home life, and his career.
“I was not a good father – I was not a good husband – and I was not a good band mate to my business partners. I probably would’ve never taken responsibility for any of this if it hadn’t been for my car wreck on Sep 9, 2021. And btw, going to jail sucks!”
He said he believed God had led him into the accident, noting he crashed “safely enough to not kill me” and that “luckily nobody else was involved and I didn’t injure or kill anyone.”
Ultimately he went to rehab, spending “4 months in the beautiful mountains of Utah.”
“I was so full of fear and guilt, that it took me all of those 4 months to really start understanding treatment and the AA way and how to best utilize these new tools that I downloaded from the amazing clinicians, counselors and other patients there. My life has been changed forever – and I’m grateful for the change.”
Find out who else is sober in Hollywood.
Read the full post…
I’m sorry it’s been a while since I’ve posted on any socials. It’s actually been a couple years since I’ve engaged with fans and friends on Twitter (now X) or Instagram.
But I figured today, at the beginning of this brand new year 2024, would be a good day to send a message out…— JDR (@JoeDonRooney) January 3, 2024