Robbie Williams has responded to his former Take That manager Nigel Martin-Smith who accused him of exaggerating his struggles with drug addiction.
A scathing response. In the first two episodes of the documentary “Boybands Forever», tracing the history of several British boy bands, Robbie Williams opened up about his early days as a drug addict when he was part of the pop group Take That. However, his statements were not unanimous, notably with Nigel Martin-Smith, former manager of the successful team, who affirmed in the same program that his former foal was “intelligent and smart enough” to blame his drug use to this group, “where he couldn’t have a girlfriend or couldn’t go out.”
“Let me respond to your statement. My drug use was never your fault. My reaction to the twisted world around me is my own. My method of self-medication is and will be something I will monitor and manage throughout my life. It’s part of my constitution and I would have had the same illness if I had been a taxi driver. I got there faster because I had the financial means, while trying in vain to counter the turbulence of the matrix washing machine of pop stardom,” he wrote in a long message on Instagram, Sunday November 17.
The singer pointed out that bands often follow a similar pattern, saying: “Boys join a boy band. The group becomes huge. The boys get sick. Some get lucky with a series of self-examinations and help to overcome their experience. Others never manage to untangle the tangle of the past. I will not break anyone’s anonymity by sharing with you the side effects of dysphoria (sadness, anxiety, Editor’s note) of a group of boys which only concern us, the boys. He then listed the consequences of fame on each of the members of his former group, including suicidal thoughts, addictions and even bulimia.
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Speaking directly to his former mentor, who said he was a “little dick” at the time, he added: “I will also remind you that the person who behaves like a “little dick” ” was 16 when she joined the group and 21 when she left. That’s the last time I saw you. I hope I will have more grace and understanding if one of my four children, at such a vulnerable age, behaves in the same way.
The pop star also urged Nigel Martin-Smith to take responsibility for some of the difficulties Take That faced behind the scenes, saying: “Everyone will understand and appreciate this level of introspection. There’s nothing wrong with admitting your faults. No one is going to sue you for not knowing or understanding the psychological effects this had on everyone.”
“It’s true Nigel, I love you, but unfortunately it’s also true that I don’t love you. I’m starting to discover that the two are not mutually exclusive. We haven’t been in the same room since 1995, I think? But in the unlikely event that we ever are, I will ask you to ignore me, it’s for the best,” concluded the British artist, urging his fans to send him only “positivity and happiness.” love”, despite their differences.
In his tribute to Liam Payne, singer of One Direction, who died on October 16 at just 31 years old, Robbie Williams notably pleaded for a different approach to managing fame, while evoking the malaise that has pursued him since his years within Take That.
