Flavor Flav Shares Emotional Update About Sobriety Journey, Says He 'Briefly Relapsed' After Nearly 5 Years

Rapper and hype man Flavor Flav recently opened up about relapsing after nearly five years of sobriety with a lengthy post on Instagram.

On Thursday (April 3), Flavor Flav, who's been outspoken about how much his sobriety means to him, revealed he "briefly relapsed" before saying he wanted to share his truth with the world to hold himself accountable. The rapper's revelation comes years after he said he spent over $2,500 a day on drugs.

In his Instagram Stories, Flavor Flav, who rose to fame as part of the hip-hop group Public Enemy, shared an emotional message letting his followers know that he would be restarting his sobriety journey from "Day 1" after nearly five years.

“I remain authentic to who I am and a large part of the past 4.5 years for me has been my sobriety journey. I think I’ve been an inspiration to many that if I could get sober, anyone can do it,” the rapper, 66, said, per Billboard.

He continued, “But just when you think it’s easy, it ain’t. I briefly relapsed. I say this to admit my mistake and publicly hold myself accountable. I am a human being who makes mistakes and it doesn’t make me a bad person. I hope those who are around me support my choice to be sober."

The New York-born performer finished, "I went back to Day 1, again. Time didn’t stop, my journey continues.”

In October 2024, Flavor Flav excited his followers when he posted about Mental Health Day and encouraged everyone to take better care of their well-being. He also made sure to add that he was celebrating four years of sobriety.

"October is an important month for my mental health. Next week, I am 4 years sober from alcohol. And today, is mental health awareness day. My mental health is an important part of my sobriety journey," he wrote online.

The reality star, who appeared in "The Surreal Life" and his dating show "Flavor of Love," explained that he checks in frequently with a therapist before revealing he rotates between two of them.

"I gots a crazy schedule and travels, my manager recommended trying out Sonia - an AI therapist that has been there for me like Janet Jackson says - Any Time Any Place," he continued.

In the comment section of his post, many of Flav's supporters chimed in, praising the media personality for sparking a positive conversation about mental health and well-being.

"Congratulations on [four] years of sobriety," someone wrote. Another agreed, writing, "Gotta love Flava. He's one of the most positive people out there. Please get your mental health checkup."

A third user added: "Nice work, Flav! EVERYONE deserves access to mental health assistance."

During a previous podcast interview with DJ Akademiks, Flavor Flav shared that before he decided to get sober, he was spending an exorbitant amount of money on drugs.

"There was a time that I was spending $2,400 to $2,600 a day... for six years straight, you do the math," he said, per PEOPLE. "That's how much I spent on drugs."

Flav also said he used to sell drugs before admitting he used much of his supply on himself.

"I ain't gonna lie, I sold a lot. But I was my best customer ... I had a lot of money at the time too, I was just doing the wrong things with my money," Flav recalled.

Despite that, though, Flav has been on a mission to change, and he's praised God for keeping him alive during his drug use. He explained that because he's here today, he wants to be a "mouthpiece to the world," helping teach others not to live as he once did.

"So, I feel that God let me live through that, so that way, I could teach people about the mistakes that I made. And hopefully, they won't make them later on in life," he said.

Flav finished, reminding people that there's a reason they should stay away from certain drugs.

"Drugs are easy to get on, and they're hard as h-ll to get off of," he concluded.