Andres Otero/WENN
Sting has risked the wrath of anti-drug campaigners by describing marijuana as a “creative tool”. The former Police rocker, who has long supported the decriminalisation of cannabis, admits he rarely smokes the drug “socially” but often sparks up a joint if he is struggling with writer’s block.
Sting is adamant attitudes towards drugs need to change, telling Britain’s Event magazine, “I think if they’re (drugs are) used specifically as tools for a stated purpose (they should be decriminalised). As in ‘I’ll smoke this joint and I’ll write a song… or I will write a piece of poetry.’ Then I think it’s perfectly acceptable… If I’m feeling stuck on a lyric or an idea isn’t quite gelling, sometimes a puff of weed will free it up. I rarely smoke it socially. It’s a tool, just as a pen is. I’m not alone. Several artists have used drugs to make great art. I certainly wouldn’t advocate that you have to take drugs to make art, but then you can’t nullify the work of the Beatles. They took LSD and they made fantastic albums…”
Sting is also convinced it is not just artists who should be allowed to puff without punishment. He adds, “The drug laws aren’t helping… People want to make life richer. Life seems flat a lot of the time. Chemicals, alcohol, marijuana can help… I think that people are disenchanted with modern living and the drug culture is an attempt to re-enchant the world.”
