The Backstreet Boys member reveals how he tried to help his bandmate Nick Carter's younger brother to get sober amid the younger star's struggle with addictions.
- Apr 29, 2023
AceShowbiz - AJ McLean gave Aaron Carter a helping hand so the latter could check into rehab five years before his death. The Backstreet Boys singer met Aaron through his brother - bandmate Nick Carter - and he's now revealed the tragic pop star reached out to him back in 2017 when he was struggling with addiction issues so AJ encouraged him to get on a flight and come to Los Angeles so he could get him the treatment he needed.
"2017, Aaron reached out to me, asked me for help. I said, 'Look, if you get on a plane, come out to L.A., I will make sure you get into treatment.' And he showed up. I was shocked, but I was happy, and he checked into a treatment centre in Malibu," AJ explained in new documentary "Aaron Carter: The Prince of Pop".
However, the 45-year-old singer - who has spent years battling his own addiction issues - went on to admit Aaron's treatment stint didn't last long because he later found out the "Crazy Little Party Girl" star had checked himself out.
AJ went on, "A couple days later, I talked to him, and then he kind of went off the map. I think it was maybe two weeks, so I called my friends at the treatment centre, and they said he checked himself out."
Aaron died in November at the age of 22 with a coroner later ruling the singer drowned in his bathtub after taking a sedative and inhaling a gas used in spray cleaners.
In the documentary, AJ went on to address his own issues which have plagued him for years, saying, "I was a functioning addict. I had been in and out of the rooms since 2001, so for 22 years I've been battling my own s***. I almost lost my marriage, I almost lost my band, I almost lost my life."
"The last time I relapsed, which would be 18 months ago, my youngest daughter was kind of the nail in the coffin for me ... She said I didn't smell like her dad. That was enough. That pretty much did it for me and I have stayed sober since and I plan on staying sober. It's a daily thing."
AJ announced he was "temporarily" separating from his wife Rochelle back in March and he insisted they are working with a therapist and he's determined to stay sober. He told TMZ.com, "We have a therapist together and I'm working my 12-step program."
"I'm staying sober and I'm just focusing on myself and really what I need to do to be the best version I can. This is a great opportunity for me to now finally do this and focus on me. That's what all the drinking and the drugs were for years - me not wanting to deal with my own demons, and now I'm dealing with it."
