Legendary music producer Timbaland is proof that anyone can lose their way in life and fall hopelessly into the sunken place.
Despite amassing a personal fortune worth millions along with fame and the admiration of A-list artists that he’s worked with, including Michael Jackson, Madonna, Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Aaliyah, Missy Elliott, Justin Timberlake and an exhausting list of other stars, Timbaland admits that he was slowly inching toward death.
“I had a dream that death was near. I saw myself with a white face,” Timbaland confessed to Men’s Health.
That’s when the iconic hitmaker, whose real name is Timothy Mosley, took steps to drop 130 pounds after fighting back against a string of life’s difficulties and bad decisions, including bad eating habits, a divorce, an IRS investigation and his dependence on OxyContin and Percocet.
Timbaland, 47, said his reliance on powerful prescription pills began back in 2011 after a root canal.
“[The pills] put me in a great feeling of not caring, of just being free. I’m like traveling, doing shows, poppin’ ’em, having fun, just being ignorant,” he said to Men’s Health.
It got so bad that the 5-foot-7-inch beatsmith tipped the scales at 350 pounds. But after moving into a smaller Miami condo, finalizing his divorce and reconciling his debt with Uncle Sam, Timbaland finally got his life and health in order.
With the support of his children and girlfriend, Punch Elite Fitness gym founder Michelle Dennis, the producer dropped 50 pounds after just one year of training.
Next, Timbaland put himself through the wringer in order to finally kick his longtime addiction to medication. He admits the process was “one of the toughest things I’ve been through. The only things that got me through it were my kids, my girl, the help of God keeping my mind still.”
