Support Life And Music
D.R.E.A.M.
Data Research Education Awareness Music
Substance Misuse Concerns for Musicians
v. 1.0
October 12, 2025
Purpose:
To identify and analyze SLAM Summit: Music Survival Guide podcast guest statements for meaningful insights on drug and alcohol use in the music industry.
Preamble:
Life by the drop.
I had an unforgettable meeting in June 2025 with counselor, Kristen Horstman, of Gray Area Drinking and Health Coaching, to talk about all things S.L.A.M., drink, and mental health. https://www.kristinhorstman.com/ Ms. Horstman eschews the term, “substance abuse” when referring to drug and alcohol problems, instead favoring “substance misuse” as a more accurate descriptor.
Substance misuse has plagued musicians since the beginning of the modern age. Cornetist Buddy Bolden, considered by many the founding father of Jazz music, was admitted to the Louisiana State Insane Asylum in 1907 following years of heavy drinking and erratic behavior, dubbed at the time as “alcohol psychosis.” He’d remain institutionalized there until his death in 1931.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) conducted a 2016 study of drug-related celebrity deaths. The report shows that musicians are the most at-risk group, owning a tragic 38.6%. Actors are a distant second, at 23.2%. The rate of drug-related celebrity deaths has nearly doubled in the 21st century. The pop culture “Sex, Drugs, and Rock n’ Roll” mantra has slowly transformed from a rallying cry of rebellion and abandon to a warning sign, signaling caution. Support Life And Music seeks to use the Artists Voices and D.R.E.A.M. programs to empower musicians, mental health professionals, and fans with critical information in the attempts to comprehend and survive the risks of drugs and alcohol in music.
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Jack Mangan
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Observations:
It’s cool, I feel alive.
Across the 34 SLAM Summit episodes analyzed, the following keywords were detected in descending order of frequency (Only relevant uses were tracked; e.g.: the term, “high,” is only relevant when used to describe an altered mental state. Instances used in other contexts, such as “high school” or “high road” were not counted toward this study).
| Drug | 26 | ████████████████████████████████████████ |
| Drink | 21 | ████████████████████████████████ |
| Alcohol | 14 | ██████████████████████ |
| Party | 14 | ██████████████████████ |
| Substance | 12 | █████████████████ |
| Sober | 11 | █████████████ |
| Drunk | 7 | ██████████ |
| Addict | 7 | ██████████ |
| Addiction | 4 | █████ |
| High | 3 | ████ |
| Wasted | 3 | ████ |
| Using | 2 | ███ |
Conclusions:
Conclusion 1: Abstinence/Sobriety is a commonly favored preventative measure against psychological harm, especially amongst those in recovery, or who acknowledge an addiction.
“The best thing I ever did, ever, was get sober. Ever.”
“And I was like, I can’t do this no more. . . And I was always the life of the party, and I just want to have fun and drink and hang out. And you know, do whatever the normal stuff. . . Hey, look, nothing wrong with that. . . I’m definitely not condemning anybody because I’ve done it more than most people ever would, you know, so I just decided to stop.”
Conclusion 2: Drug and alcohol misuse lead to deeper feelings of despair, hopelessness, lack of direction, and to suicidal ideation.
“It’s unfortunate, but a lot of people go to the bar, and that’s their therapy, but that’s their medicine, and it’s not. It’s a road. It’s a road down. It’s not a road out, right? And the road out is important.”
“It got to the point where I couldn’t even play a show without drinking, because I didn’t want to be there. It wasn’t fun anymore. I didn’t have a purpose.”
Conclusion 3: There is a high prevalence of drugs and alcohol in the music scene: predominantly but not limited to: music venues, recording and rehearsal spaces, bands’ shared living spaces, private homes, etc.
- Alcohol, as well as other narcotics, are often provided gratis to touring bands by the venue or promoter, either as a perk or as requested on the bands’ rider (a touring act’s amenities request form). Most music venues have alcohol available for purchase.
- After-show parties away from the venue vary, but are not uncommon for performing bands. They can occur at hotel rooms, the private local homes of friends, fans, or band members, or in the confines of the touring vehicles. It should be noted that gatherings away from public spaces are usually buffered from social scrutiny, restrictions, and the risk of legal consequences.
- Drug and alcohol restrictions at music rehearsal or recording spaces are rare, and always at the discretion of either the studio and/or the participating artists themselves.
- NOTE: Anyone who’s spent time with addicts is aware: an addict needs no special occasion to get high or low, and can often find opportunities to do so, either in private or in the company of like-minded users, even when restrictions are in place. This particular scenario is a legitimate risk, but only applies to addicts under the current sway of their addictions. It is not officially included in this report because it has not been discussed during any SLAM Summit.
- NOTE: Anyone who’s spent time with addicts is aware: an addict needs no special occasion to get high or low, and can often find opportunities to do so, either in private or in the company of like-minded users, even when restrictions are in place. This particular scenario is a legitimate risk, but only applies to addicts under the current sway of their addictions. It is not officially included in this report because it has not been discussed during any SLAM Summit.
“It depends on your reasoning for going into this world to begin with. . . people party for different reasons. And if you’re partying because you just want to have a good time, it’s a lot easier to avoid stuff, or if you like, the art, or whatever, or you like the fellowship. But if you’re partying to cover up something, that’s where it starts to get a little dangerous, when you see people who are trying to forget or substitute. It’s the same thing with drinking. If you drink alcohol socially, just to have a couple of drinks, that’s a lot different than if you are drinking to numb some problem that you might have, you know. And so your intent on going into the club is number one. And then the problem is that in the clubs, vices are very readily available. So it’s super easy. So you just have to be careful.”
These conditions put alcohol and drugs in the same building with musicians, personnel, and fans, which presents a risk to everyone in proximity, especially including those with substance abuse disorders or addictions, past or present.
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Closing in on death.
Closing remarks:
The topic of substance misuse is raised frequently by SLAM Summit guests when discussing mental health hazards in the music lifestyle. Drug and alcohol use are commonly cited as inhibitors of health and happiness. Similarly, numerous guests have cited sobriety as a fundamental requirement for sustainable happiness and survival as a musician.
“Drugs and alcohol are heavily present in the music lifestyle,” “getting drunk and/or high make you feel more out of control,” and “abstinence is the preferred protective practice” – – not exactly shocking revelations, but they are consistent with the data. . . Many different SLAM panel discussions expand on these themes and illuminate positive, healthy strategies for individuals:
- Some people are able to moderate, i.e.; some are able to engage in tempered levels of drinking or recreational drug use without mental or physical damage, including the compulsion to commit harm to self or others, or to increase their drug/alcohol intake.
For those who are not, the safest, healthiest, most responsible practice is abstinence.- A few SLAM Summit guests have spoken of their tendency to be “boring,” skipping parties, adhering to a strict sleep regimen, keeping strict control of their alcohol intake, if consuming at all, especially on performance days.
“I’ve seen people getting drunk while working with bands. And it’s like, I don’t behave that way. I just think, you know, I still have a job to do, and a lot of times I tell people, I don’t go to the after party, because for the event that the after party is for, we’re working all day.”
- When asked for advice on happiness and resisting despair, numerous SLAM Summit guests have spoken of the necessity for sobriety. Two guests who’ve talked openly about suicide attempts have cited sobriety, i.e.: quitting all drinking and drug use, as key factors in their journeys back from the edge.
“I don’t discourage people who party. I’ve drank. I’ve done more cocaine than most people. Um, I survived it. I was functional during it. But there were times, man, I would be on a hotel balcony on the 20th floor and just wonder what. . . ‘You know, I could just jump off this thing right now and end it all.’ And it was in. . . It’s hard. There were moments of despair. There still are.”
- A number of musicians and industry professionals have spoken in favor of “dry tour buses,” meaning that there are no drugs or alcohol allowed around the band or its crew – – not on the tour vehicles, not backstage, not at meals, not at the hotel.
- In many instances, the panelists have acknowledged that this isn’t always feasible or fully enforceable, and not 100% effective against an addict’s ability to find ways to use.
- The panelists have also noted that strict “dry” policies are not a necessity for every band, but may be a good idea for those who’ve contended with addiction or substance misuse issues in the past.
“If an artist said, ‘Hey, I’m sober for 6 months now,’ and we go out on the road, and they’re putting some alcohol in the tour bus fridge. Observe that, and say, ‘Hey, I thought you said you’re sober. Do we need to talk about this? Is your family aware of this? Are your band members aware of this? Is there something that we need to discuss?’”
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Sources and methodology:
- The S.L.A.M. internal Data Research Education Awareness Music Team (D.R.E.A.M. Team) analyzed the full spoken content of 34 different “SLAM Summit” panel discussion recordings, tagging meaningful statements across various categories. This report focuses on quotes associated with the “Unique Risk Factors” tag, seeking commentary and call-outs pertaining to risk factors that are unique to professional musicians and the professional music environment.
- We did not seek to confirm or debunk the truth or validity of any statements made. The purpose was to analyze, process, quantify, draw logical connections, find meaningful commonalities, themes, and/or contradictions between the statements, and ultimately share the recorded observations, feelings, concerns, beliefs, philosophies, etc., in the speakers’ own words.
- The speakers were invited to participate in “SLAM Summit: Music Survival Guide” panel discussions. All episodes are publicly available or are scheduled for release at http://www.supportlifeandmusic.org/voices. The quotes in this report will be kept anonymous, and are not intended to be taken out of context as any kind of reflection on any persons involved in the conversations.
- Some of the content presented has been edited to:
- Remove extraneous words and phrases, like “you know,” “um,” “like,” etc., as well as to remove repeated or stammered words/phrases.
- Correct obvious Zoom transcription errors in translation, dictation, or grammar. (crosschecked against the actual episode audio.)
- No statement was changed, no quote was edited to directly or indirectly change its original meaning in any way.
- The “Conclusions” section of this report was written solely in-house at Support Life And Music, and its recommendations are drawn from S.L.A.M. backgrounds in the music industry and mental health, as well as from the designated data set. All facts, figures, opinions, conclusions, and suggestions in this article are presented solely for informational purposes. There are mental health improvement techniques that can be undertaken by anyone in any situation to benefit themselves and others, but consultation with a certified mental health professional is always recommended. See the Support Life And Music website for a more expansive list of healthcare providers.
Support Life And Music Dream Team:
- Jack Mangan
- Sarah Hyde
- Dr. Sheila Unwin
- Dr. Carolyn Cavanaugh Toft
- David “ditto” Cattarin
