Elton John - 'I'm Grateful For Those Years Of Sex And Drugs'

Source: Instagram

Sir Elton John shares some drama-filled stories in his new memoir Me – including one where he claimed Richard Gere and Sylvester Stallone almost came to blows over Princess Diana. And, in a new interview with GQ Hype to promote the book’s release, John opened up about how his battle with addiction not only made him who he is today, but it also put him on the path to meeting his husband, David Furnish.

The 72-year-old singer told the outlet that he spent 16 years of his life “getting f***ed up” and 29 years “getting better.” But, he is “grateful for those years of sex and drugs” because they made him who he is today.

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John admits that he even though he is grateful for that time in his life, he despises looking back on those years. The Goodbye Yellow Brick Road singer explained that he had a good time at the beginning, but things turned awful toward the end.

“But if I hadn’t have gone through them, I wouldn’t be sitting here having the great life I have now,” said John. “I would have never met David. I would never have had children.”

On July 29th, John celebrated 29 years of sobriety with an Instagram post, writing that he was a broken man at the time, but he finally summoned up the courage to say three life-changing words: “I need help.” The singer also thanked all of the “selfless people” who helped him on his journey through sobriety.

John’s new memoir chronicles his difficult childhood – when he was known as Reginald Dwight – and his more than five-decade career, where he began as a songwriter in the 1960s before hitting the charts for the first time in 1970 with Your Song. Throughout the 70s and 80s, John was not only addicted to drugs and alcohol, but he also had addiction issues with shopping and sex – and he battled bulimia.

The Candle In The Wind singer says that he was not living a normal life back then, but he is a survivor. John notes that life is full of pitfalls, even when you’re sober. Now, he can deal with them instead of running away and hiding.

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Elton John is now married to his longtime partner, David Furnish. They entered into a civil partnership in 2005 and then married in 2014 when England and Wales legalized same-sex marriage. The couple are the parents of two boys, Zachary, 8, and Elijah, 6.

During his career, John has sold more than 200 million albums worldwide. He is currently in the middle of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour which will end in 2020. The singer says this is absolutely the last time he will go on tour because he wants to spend more time with his family.

Me hits stores on October 15th.