'I Survived': Travis Barker Shares What It Was Like To Cheat Death

Travis Barker has done a lot in his career, from being the drummer in Blink-182 and performing as a solo artist to being a producer, actor, reality TV star, and restaurant owner. But life hasn't always been so easy for him.

Barker shared with Kerrang, "Oh yeah, make no mistake, I got rich, I did a lot of drugs and I almost died. But, you know, it was all a symptom of what was going on in my life."

After Blink-182 split in 2005, Barker joined a collaboration with Adam Goldstein, also known as DJ AM, with a union named TRV$DJAM. In 2008, a private plane crashed with the pair on board. The crash killed four people- the two pilots, Travis' personal assistant, Chris Baker, and his security guard, Che Still. Travis and Adam survived, though Adam died a year later.

Barker said, "There was loss. I lost one of my best friends, my assistant. I lost my security guard. A year later I lost DJ AM. He was one of my best friends, too. So I had a lot of people that were really important to me in my life taken away. Beyond that, I looked death in the face and I survived."

When asked how cheating death changed his life, Barker responded, "Oh, it absolutely changed my life, 110 percent. There was just a lot for me to deal with, from survivor’s guilt, to watching my assistant’s son grow up without a father. He’s the same age as my daughter. I know every day since that crash has been a blessing. I just had to convince myself that I walked away still-alive for a reason, and I should make the most of every day. But until you almost die, until you look death in the face, you can’t honestly say, ‘I cherish every day like it’s my last.’ I think people that have cheated death just do it in a different way."