Rascal Flatts' Joe Don Rooney announces his sobriety: 'My life has been changed forever'
Rascal Flatts lead guitarist Joe Don Rooney is setting the record straight about his life and revealing his decision to become sober.
The musician shared an update on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Wednesday, apologizing to his fans for his absence from his various social media pages.
"It's actually been a couple years since I've engaged with fans and friends on Twitter (now X) or Instagram," he wrote. "But I figured today, at the beginning of this brand new year 2024, would be a good day to send a message out to the world."
"First off, I am alive!" he wrote, attempting to clear up the variety of "rumors and opinions" circulating about him, adding that he is "finally healthy and ready for the world."
In the lengthy post, he shared how his life and career took a turn at 4 a.m. on Sept. 9, 2021, when he said he "ran square into a tree and about killed myself."
"I was drunk and I was so far gone with my life - I was completely out of control and finished with trying to fight the fears, depression and anxieties that had spun me out in a way I've never experienced before," he wrote.
Rooney, 48, said that he'd had a drinking problem for many years by that point.
"And as they say in AA and treatment, it's a progressive disease," he wrote. "I am living proof that the progressive nature of drinking can really ratchet up and as I grew older as an adult, my drinking grew worse."
He cited pressure from his career and mistakes he had made in his "home life," in addition to "pain and trauma" from his childhood and early adult years, as contributors to his lifestyle choices.
"I was not a good father - I was not a good husband - and I was not a good band mate to my business partners," he explained. "I probably would've never taken responsibility for any of this if it hadn't been for my car wreck on Sep 9, 2021. And btw, going to jail sucks!"
The guitarist said he believed God had led him into the accident, during which he said he drove into a tree "safely enough to not kill me." He added that "luckily nobody else was involved and I didn't injure or kill anyone."
"I could literally be in a Federal Prison for life right now," he added. "That is the reality of what my life had become."
The crash was a wakeup call for Rooney, the musician said, and he subsequently checked himself into rehab, spending "4 months in the beautiful mountains of Utah," despite feeling "ashamed" of himself at the beginning of his stay.
"I was so full of fear and guilt, that it took me all of those 4 months to really start understanding treatment and the AA way and how to best utilize these new tools that I downloaded from the amazing clinicians, counselors and other patients there," he said. "My life has been changed forever - and I'm grateful for the change."
Rooney shared in the post that on Jan. 13, he will have been sober for almost 28 months. He added that he previously "never believed" he could live a life free from alcohol, adding that the habits had become a huge part of his daily and nightly routines.
"I had tried to stop on my own in the past but the powerful nature of alcohol always found its way back into my life," he recalled. "I learned that I had to come to the realization that I was powerless over alcohol - and a power much greater than myself (and much greater than alcohol) was the only way to stop drinking and completely restore my sanity."
He also credited his family, professional clinical advisers and his new "sober forever friends" for their help to get his life back on track.
"Now, I need to protect my family and protect my sobriety. I have new healthy boundaries for the first time in my life. Only positive, loving, caring & understanding people may enter," he wrote.
Rooney concluded his post by wishing his followers "an amazing 2024" and thanking them for their "love, support and prayers."
Rooney was formerly the lead guitarist and harmony singer for Rascal Flatts, which was founded in 1999 in Nashville, Tennessee. The group, which also consisted of lead vocalist Gary LeVox and bassist and background vocalist Jay DeMarcus, officially disbanded in 2021 after a 22-year run.
Rooney was previously married to former Miss Georgia Tiffany Fallon from 2006 to 2023. The pair share three children: son Jagger Donovan Rooney and daughters Raquel Blue Rooney and Devon Olivia Rooney.
