Pick a Day

Music History Events: Drug-Related

August 28, 1964 The Beatles smoke pot for the first time, supplied by Bob Dylan, who joins the band after one of their concerts in New York state. Dylan is surprised they haven't tried it before, as he thought they sang "I get high" in their song "I Want To Hold Your Hand," when it was really "I can't hide."

December 14, 1963 Dinah Washington dies of an accidental barbiturate overdose at age 39.

November 14, 1961 Before a show in Indianapolis, Ray Charles is arrested when marijuana and heroin are found in his hotel room. Charges are dropped on a technicality, but his drug problems were far from over.

April 25, 1955 The UN's commission on narcotics releases a report stating "definite connection between increased marijuana smoking and that form of entertainment known as bebop and rebop."

April 20, 2020 Homebound during the coronavirus pandemic, Willie Nelson stages the "Come And Toke It" live stream to support efforts to legalize marijuana and free those incarcerated for it. Guests include Ziggy Marley, who does "One Love," and Kacey Musgraves, who performs "Slow Burn."

August 20, 2016 Former 3 Doors Down guitarist Matt Roberts is found dead in a Wisconsin hotel room at age 38, presumably from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs.

July 20, 2016 Weed-loving rappers Wiz Khalifa and Snoop Dogg begin their "High Road" tour with a show in West Palm Beach, Florida. Says Khalifa, "It's a joint performance."

May 5, 2016 Arsenio Hall files a $5 million defamation suit against Sinead O'Connor after the singer posts a message on Facebook suggesting he was the recently deceased Prince's drug dealer. She later apologizes and Hall drops the suit.

April 7, 2014 25-year-old Peaches Geldof, daughter of the Live Aid mastermind Bob Geldof, is found dead in Kent, England, after overdosing on heroin. Her mother, Paula Yates, died in 2000 when Peaches was 11.

November 10, 2013 At the MTV Europe Awards, Miley Cyrus smokes a joint while accepting her Best Video award for "Wrecking Ball." The ceremony is held in Amsterdam, so it's legal.

October 8, 2012 Green Day is forced to cancel their appearance at the New Orleans' Voodoo Music Festival, citing Billie Joe Armstrong's problems with substance abuse. Armstrong had an onstage outburst mid-show in Las Vegas a few weeks earlier that prompted him to get treatment.

September 19, 2012 Fiona Apple is arrested when her tour bus is stopped in the West Texas town of Sierra Blanca, the same place where Willie Nelson and Snoop Dogg were previously busted. Border patrol agents find four grams of hash on the bus, which Apple says is hers. She spends a night in jail before being released on bail.

October 8, 2011 Weezer bass player Mikey Welsh dies of an overdose-induced heart attack at a hotel in Chicago, Illinois, at age 40.

August 7, 2011 Big Boi of OutKast is arrested in Miami on drug charges when police find ecstasy and Viagra in baggage with his name on it.

March 28, 2011 Rapper Rick Ross is arrested in Shreveport, Louisiana, after being caught with one gram of marijuana. Ross was smoking the drug at the Hilton Hotel when guests reported smelling a foul odor coming from his room. Ross is booked and released the same night.

March 8, 2011 Alice in Chains bass player Mike Starr dies of a prescription drug overdose at age 44. Starr was the last person to see the group's lead singer, Layne Staley, before he died in 2002.

November 9, 2010 Rapper Wiz Khalifa is arrested in Greenville, North Carolina, on drug charges after authorities smell marijuana coming from his tour bus. Police find 60 grams of pot after searching the vehicle. Khalifa is booked and released on a $300,000 bond. The rapper's lawyers are able to reduce the charge to personal possession and Khalifa avoids jail time.

May 24, 2010 Slipknot bass player Paul Gray dies at age 38 from an accidental overdose in his Iowa hotel room.

September 19, 2008 Ten years after getting arrested for lewd behavior in a Los Angeles public bathroom, George Michael is arrested on drug charges in a restroom north of London. "I want to apologize to my fans for screwing up again, and to promise them I'll sort myself out," the singer says. "And to say sorry to everybody else, just for boring them."

July 11, 2008 Barenaked Ladies' co-lead singer Steven Page is busted for cocaine possession while visiting his girlfriend's apartment in Fayetteville, New York. The charges will eventually be dropped, but the incident is a point of contention with his clean-cut bandmates and leads to his departure the following year.

August 14, 2007 Amy Winehouse checks into rehab for the first time, entering the Causeway Retreat in Osea Island, England with her husband, Blake Fielder. They both start using again as soon as they get out.

August 8, 2007 Amy Winehouse overdoses on a mixture of alcohol, heroin, cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine after a London pub crawl. Her hospitalization causes the cancellation of her first US tour. The singer refused her record company's request to enter rehab for alcohol abuse, inspiring her hit record "Rehab." She does eventually end up in a clinic, but never gets sober for good.

January 9, 2005 Neo soul singer D'Angelo is arrested for drunk driving in his Richmond, Virginia, hometown. He is also charged with possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance.

April 6, 2004 Wilco's frontman, Jeff Tweedy, checks into a rehabilitation center after developing an addiction to painkillers. A statement released by the band reads: "The treatment follows a well-documented history of Tweedy's battle with migraine headache."

July 1, 2000 In London, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails overdoses on China white heroin that he believes is cocaine. Reznor, who has been battling addiction throughout the '90s, redoubles his efforts to get sober and eventually does a few years later.

October 11, 1998 The first Smoke Out Festival sparks up in San Bernardino, California. Organized by Cypress Hill, about 40,000 fans converge in the celebration of music and marijuana. The festival returns every year through 2003, then returns in 2009.

June 1, 1998 Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots is arrested for heroin possession in New York the day he is supposed to do a solo show.

April 24, 1996 After being forced to cancel shows, Stone Temple Pilots issue a statement saying that lead singer Scott Weiland has "become unable to rehearse or appear for these shows due to his dependency on drugs. He is currently under a doctor's care in a medical facility." Weiland sees this as a betrayal, and his relationship with his bandmates turns rocky.

August 17, 1995 Depeche Mode lead singer Dave Gahan slashes his wrists with razor blades in a suicide attempt. He is saved when a friend comes by and calls paramedics, who take him to Cedars Sinai Medical Center, where he wakes up the next morning in the psychiatric ward.More

April 1, 1992 Nigel Preston, drummer and founding member of The Cult, dies of a heroin overdose at age 28.