Brantley Gilbert Would ‘Probably Be Dead’ If It Weren’t For Keith Urban
“If it weren’t for him, I don’t know if I’d be sober or be in this business anymore. I’d probably be dead,” Gilbert admitted.
When Brantley Gilbert found himself trapped in rehab during his recovery from his alcohol and painkiller addiction, he leaned on the support from a fellow country artist and former addict: Keith Urban.
A few years back after finding huge success in Nashville, Gilbert seemed to be at the peak of his addiction. The party lifestyle had become a more prominent part of his day-to-day schedule, and yet began to destroy his body from within. After getting admitted to the hospital for pancreatitis, the country singer transferred over to a rehab facility where he raged over the thought of sobriety.
By the grit of his teeth, Gilbert hung on as long as he could bare it until he just wanted out of the center. Thankfully, it was Urban who came to his rescue as a shoulder to lean on throughout his fears as progressing in country music without the vices.
“I told him, I don’t think I can do my job. I don’t know if I can ever play a song at my shows without being (messed) up. Or writing, I was worried my songs wouldn’t be the same, that I wouldn’t be on everyone else’s level,” Gilbert told The Tennessean in a recent interview.
The conversation led to inspiration for Gilbert to try harder in the rehab process and to focus in on sobriety as much as he could. Five years of sobriety from alcohol and pills later, Gilbert thanks Urban for his massive life change throughout the toughest period of his years.
“If it weren’t for him, I don’t know if I’d be sober or be in this business anymore. I’d probably be dead,” he admitted.
Gilbert is celebrating and channeling his sobriety into his upcoming release, The Devil Don’t Sleep, which comes out on Friday, January 28. Fans can also see Gilbert out on the road this winter on his Devil Don’t Sleep Tour, kicking off February 2 in Reading, PA.
