I was a 90s boyband star who sold 10m records but hotel lock-ins led to drugs spiral… I know how Liam Payne struggled

THE charts were dominated by boybands backmost successful the Nineties and Noughties - and 911 was 1 of the biggest.

From 1995 to 1999, the trio - made up of Lee Brennan, Jimmy Constable and Spike Dawbarn - scored 10 successive UK apical 10 singles, with their biggest deed being Bodyshakin.

Watching One Direction prima Liam Payne’s funeral yesterday was a stark reminder for Jimmy, present 52, of the pressures of being successful a boyband - and of the acheronian spiral helium went into pursuing 911’s divided successful 2000.

Jimmy, who hails from Liverpool, formed 911 successful Glasgow with Lee and Spike successful 1995.

They sold 10 cardinal singles and six cardinal albums astir the satellite passim their clip together, and had high-level information portion they were touring astatine the tallness of their fame.

Liam tragically passed away connected October 16, astatine the property of 31, aft falling from his 3rd level balcony successful Buenos Aires, Argentina.

But 3 years earlier, he’d revealed the worst portion astir being successful a boyband was getting “locked up” successful edifice rooms aft performing - starring to his "pills and booze" addiction.

"The occupation was, the champion mode to unafraid america was to fastener america successful our rooms, and what is successful the room? A mini-bar" helium said. "So I had a party-for-one that seemed to transportation connected for years. It was chaotic but the lone mode you could get vexation out."

And Jimmy says that was the aforesaid for 911, estimating they had a full of 3 weeks disconnected successful six years and spent the full clip surviving successful hotels.

In an exclusive interrogation with The Sun, helium says: “Those 4 oregon 5 years, it was full-on pressure.

“The occupation expanse comes done your doorway each time and determination is nary clip to bash thing other isolated from what you're concentrating on.

"Your grounds institution evidently wants you to beryllium full-on, 100%, nary clip off. ‘This is what you do. This is your schedule,’ past it’s literally, ‘Right, backmost into your edifice country and you can’t travel retired due to the fact that it’s excessively brainsick downstairs’.”

Military-level security

He continues: “If you ever wanted to spell out, spell conscionable immoderate friends oregon whatever, we ever had this happening wherever determination was a car parkland underneath the hotel. 

“So our circuit manager would get america successful the van, and past we'd beryllium out. It's not similar you could conscionable locomotion extracurricular and get a cab, due to the fact that you'd astir apt walk astir astatine slightest an hr doing photographs and autographs, which is great. 

“But, erstwhile you're trying to get a spot of peace, oregon clip connected your own, that was the mode you utilized to bash it.”

While 911 were utilized to adoring fans successful the UK, Jimmy says southeast Asia was adjacent much aggravated for the band.

“Going retired was wholly disconnected limits,” helium says. “It was to the constituent wherever they gave america the apical level of the hotels and information connected each level.

“It was crazy, implicit madness, to the constituent wherever the service was being drafted in!”

Due to the changeless pressures from their grounds company, Jimmy descended into alcoholism, infamously appearing drunk connected SM:TV Live - the Saturday greeting kids’ amusement hosted by Ant and Dec and Cat Deeley.

Jimmy admits booze and drugs were handed to the boys whenever they needed it.

“Oh God, arsenic you tin imagine, you tin get it whenever you want,” helium tells us. “Because determination is that benignant of yes culture. 

“So astatine the extremity of the day, particularly if radical are connected the payroll, they're determination to support you blessed and springiness you immoderate you need, due to the fact that they privation you connected apical signifier whenever they request you to perform.

“You could get immoderate you wanted, whenever you wanted.”

10-12 bottles of vino a day

In 2000, Lee and Spike discontinue the band, forcing Jimmy to denote 911’s divided unrecorded connected The Chris Moyles Breakfast Show connected Radio 1.

"I didn't person immoderate clip to get my caput astir it,” helium told the Guardian successful 2005. “I had a lump successful my pharynx saying it, past we came retired of Radio 1 and the different 2 guys went to the pub. 

“I got successful my car and took disconnected and I ne'er saw them for 2 years.”

Suddenly Jimmy had nary intent successful beingness - and was getting done 10 to 12 bottles of wine each time with his then-girlfriend.

He says: “I was waking up the adjacent greeting thinking, ‘I don't cognize what I'm going to bash contiguous due to the fact that the occupation sheet’s not determination anymore,’ and my ‘friends’ weren't determination anymore, due to the fact that they weren't getting paid anymore.

“I didn't cognize what to bash with myself. I felt precise lost. 

“I felt it was casual conscionable to portion each day, and past erstwhile the portion didn't numb it anymore, I turned to the drugs.”

By 2002, Jimmy was astatine his lowest point, sitting connected his furniture with a vessel of Jack Daniel's successful 1 manus and immoderate painkillers successful the other.

He says: “I got to the constituent wherever I was acceptable to extremity it, due to the fact that I conscionable didn't deliberation that determination was thing near for maine to do. 

“I didn't person the euphony concern and I didn't bash the occupation that I've ever done, past I benignant of felt similar I didn't person anything.”

'More needs to beryllium done'

Eventually, Jimmy sought assistance and started going to therapy.

He says: “The biggest happening for maine was accepting the occupation was me, and however I was dealing with the split.

“I ever felt bitter towards the world, arsenic if the satellite owed maine something. And that's not the mode it is. 

“There are radical retired determination that person problems, but until they judge they person a occupation themselves, it volition ne'er get immoderate better.”

And during the pandemic, Jimmy swapped swooning fans for flashing bluish lights arsenic helium joined the ambulance service. 

He besides present tours with Lee and Spike, having got backmost unneurotic with them for the Big Reunion successful 2013.

Sadly this wasn't the aforesaid for Liam, who had respective stints successful rehab earlier helium died.

Last month, prosecutors said they judge was “in a authorities of semi oregon full unconsciousness" erstwhile helium fell to his death.

Three radical were arrested and charged with "abandonment of a idiosyncratic followed by death, proviso and facilitation of narcotics," confirmed a connection by the bureau of authoritative Andres Esteban Madrea.

And Jimmy believes much needs to beryllium done astatine grounds companies to halt akin tragedies happening again.

He says: “Record companies should supply a scientist to each their signings, oregon idiosyncratic that the artists tin spell to and say, ‘Well, I've had this acquisition successful the euphony business. I've truly enjoyed it. I've been fixed everything connected a plate. Now they've taken it distant from me. What bash I do?’

“And past they should inactive beryllium determination for years to come, to assistance them done the process of getting backmost to normality.”

911 are connected the Kubix Arena Tour this December with chap boybands Five and East 17 Tickets . For much info: www.kubixfestival.com