Tommy Lee Says He Injected Jack Daniel’s Into His Veins After Running Out of Drugs

Tommy Lee of Motley Crue at a press conference announcing the reunion of Motley Crue held on Dec. 6, 2004 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. (File Photo by: zz/Tim Goodwin/STAR MAX/IPx/AP Photo)

Tommy Lee says one of the clearest signs that his substance abuse had spiraled out of control came when he and Mötley Crüe bandmate Nikki Sixx began injecting Jack Daniel’s whiskey into their veins after running out of drugs.

During a recent appearance on the Zach Sang Show podcast, the drummer recalled an incident that took place during the band’s hard-partying years while staying in a hotel room after supplies of heroin and cocaine had run dry.

@zachsangshow @Tommy Lee on how bad his addiction got #tommylee #jackdaniels #addiction #zachsangshow #fyp ♬ original sound – Zach Sang Show

“Just for a very short time,” Lee said when asked whether he had really injected Jack Daniel’s. “That’s right before I got sober.”

According to Lee, it was the middle of the night and he and Sixx were unable to find more drugs.

“We were shooting drugs, heroin and cocaine, just doing it, and we ran out,” Lee said. “We’re in a hotel room, in Houston, Texas or something, and there’s no way we’re gonna get anything.”

Lee said the pair turned to a bottle of Jack Daniel’s instead.

“We just unscrewed the cap on this fifth of Jack, and then filled up the cap with Jack and then started pulling it up through a syringe, and we’re shooting Jack,” he said.

Looking back, Lee said the decision made little sense even at the time.

“It didn’t really dawn on me what we were doing. The stupidity of it was like, we could’ve just drank this, but no, we had to shoot it,” Lee said. “Why? It’s like, you guys are out of your minds.”

Lee referred to himself and Sixx as the “toxic twins,” a nickname associated with the pair’s notorious lifestyle during Mötley Crüe’s rise to fame.

“Appropriately named toxic twins. We did some dumb s–t,” Lee said.

The drummer said moments like that eventually forced him to confront the reality of his addiction.

“It’s not until you get to that level where you realize, this is not working, dude. Someone’s gonna die,” he said. “Why don’t we just pump the brakes here, and go do a little time of rehab.”

Lee’s relationship with alcohol has been well documented over the years. He has previously said he was drinking as much as two gallons of vodka per day at the height of his addiction.

In 2022, Lee announced that he had gotten sober, though he has since spoken openly about the challenges of maintaining that lifestyle after decades of heavy drinking and drug use.

The latest comments came during a wide-ranging interview on the Zach Sang Show podcast, where Lee reflected on some of the most extreme moments of his career and the lessons he took from them.