Saying Scott Stapp has been through a lot in the 20-year span of his music career is akin to saying Adele sold “a few copies” of her latest album.
It would be a gross understatement.
The lead singer for the band Creed has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, struggled with substance abuse and found himself in a leaked sex tape. Lest we forget that Creed, while currently on an indefinite hiatus, has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide.
But when Stapp speaks these days, he does so confidently and in a tone that does not suggest he’s been through so many traumatic events. As a matter of fact, at times when reflecting on his trials and tribulations, the lead singer does so in a jovial manner.
“I’m so allergic to alcohol and drugs that every time I use or drink, I break out in handcuffs and end up on the 6 o’clock news,” Stapp joked when we chatted on my radio show last week. He was making the rounds amid his “Proof Of Life Tour,” a trek in support of his last solo project although he also plays his Creed catalogue at the shows.
“That’s literally the truth man!” he continued, not missing a beat.
Sadly for Stapp and his family, it was a long road to fully realize his “allergy.” Stapp had been to rehab but never truly sobered up. In 2009 while Creed was promoting a tour that stopped at Montage Mountain, the lead singer told me on 97 BHT that despite his past, he would still have a glass of wine on occasion while on the road.
As Stapp later found out, that’s not exactly how life after rehab works.
“I didn’t want to believe that I couldn’t be normal like everyone else,” he admits now. “But a lot has changed since then, and I know that I can’t do that.”
The seemingly big breakthrough for Stapp was after his latest downfall, which included a string of bizarre Facebook videos referencing President Obama and ISIS. Stapp and his wife Jaclyn sought out MusiCares, a foundation created by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences that “provides a safety net of critical assistance for music people in times of need.” Stapp, of course, is a Grammy winner of the Academy’s, taking home “Best Rock Song” with Creed in 2001.
Through MusiCares, Stapp was able to end up in a proper facility that provided him with what he and his family believes was the missing piece to his rehab: the bipolar diagnosis. Now, the musician has a new outlook on his amended lifestyle.
“I just live my life 24 hours at a time, one day at a time. When I break it down in to those small increments, it’s a lot easier to accept and digest,” Stapp said of his soberness.
Stapp, who is planning the announcement of a new band and is working on another solo album, says that the new perspective has had a positive outlook on his life. Although, that might be an understatement too.
