Kip Winger recently spoke with Scars And Guitars about how he avoided the wild partying lifestyle that many rock stars fell into during the 1980s and 1990s. He explained that while he could drink a lot, it made him feel sick and hurt his singing voice. Because of this, he decided early on not to let alcohol control his life. Instead of seeing drinking and drugs as part of being a rockstar, Kip focused on becoming a better musician.
He also talked about Jani Lane, the late singer of Warrant, and Vince Neil from Mötley Crüe. Kip said both of them were great guys when they were sober, but alcohol changed their personalities. He shared a story about touring with Jani Lane, where Lane’s drinking got so bad that he had to be kicked off the tour bus. Kip also mentioned that Jani struggled with his biggest hit, Cherry Pie, because he felt people only saw him for that song. Kip thought that even if Jani didn’t love the song, it gave him financial security, and he should have accepted it instead of letting it bring him down.
Kip pointed out that some musicians, like Duff McKagan from Guns N’ Roses, were able to overcome their addictions and turn their lives around. Duff went from being a heavy drinker to studying business and even earning a black belt in martial arts. But sadly, not everyone can beat their addictions. Jani Lane, for example, kept struggling until he passed away from alcohol poisoning in a hotel room.
“Man, first of all, alcohol made me physically ill. I could drink, and by the way, my grandmother was an alcoholic, so not only did it make me ill, but I could also drink anyone under the table. So it was just not a good thing for me to be around. If I drank one bottle of wine, I’d get in the car to go get my second one. And then when I moved to Nashville, it was like a badge of honor to drive drunk. And one day I just put the bottle down and said, ‘I ain’t doing this again.’ ‘Cause it was starting to fuck my voice up. I was never an alcoholic. I only drank when I didn’t play because it fucked my voice up so bad.”
Kip continued: “Look, I’ve had some bad encounters with Jani, but he was the nicest guy ever when he wasn’t wasted. I don’t know what it is. I wanna say it’s some type of weakness, but I don’t wanna be mean and I don’t mean it in a mean way. If you have a propensity for drinking, that’s a tough one. I mean, Vince Neil [Mötley Crüe] is another one. Nicest guy on the planet when he’s straight, worst motherfucker you’ll ever meet when he’s wasted. And I think that a lot of the clichés, especially in the ’80s with Guns N Roses when they were all with the bottle of Jack and all this bullshit, a lot of people followed suit. That was never my thing, man. I was like, ‘Man, I want to be a better musician.’ And so I never partook in any of that shit. And by the way, in all these autobiographies, like, ‘Yeah, man, I OD’d that night and they took me to the hospital and there was 10,000 people…’ And I’m, like, ‘You know what? You OD’d on drugs because you’re stupid. You did drugs ’cause you’re stupid.'”
Kip also spoke about how religion played a role in some of these struggles. Jani Lane once tried to stay sober with the help of a preacher, but his behavior became overwhelming. He started preaching to Kip and saying personal insults, which led to him being kicked off the bus. This showed how addiction can cause ups and downs—one moment, someone is trying to get better, and the next, they’re making bad choices again.
Kip believes that staying successful in the music industry isn’t just about talent—it’s also about discipline and making smart decisions. He thinks people who overdose do so because they make bad choices, though he understands addiction is a tough battle. His story is unique because he managed to stay focused on his music, avoid the dangerous lifestyle that hurt so many others, and continue making music for years.
