How Keith Richards quit smoking

After being an active smoker for over 54 years, Keith Richards announced in 2019 that he wanted to quit cigarettes. Now, almost three years later, the guitarist says he no longer misses smoking and explains how he overcame the addiction.

Although Richards has a lot of experience with overcoming addictions to harder drugs in particular, it was precisely the cigarette abstinence that was particularly difficult for him: “Quitting heroin is hell, but it’s a short hell. Cigarettes are always there and you’ve always smoked them. I just take them and light them without thinking about it.”

In an interview with CBS Sunday Morning, the 78-year-old now sounds much more positive: “I don’t think about it much anymore. I used nicotine patches for a few weeks.” In addition to the medical help that accompanied his success, his changed attitude towards life also seems to make withdrawal easier. The musician reports of a self-control mechanism: “Sometimes it just rings in me and something says to me, ‘Hey buddy – that’s enough.'”

He explains that this ringing is probably due to the fact that he has “arrived” and reached a certain age for which his previous lifestyle is no longer suitable. “Fortunately” he no longer misses smoking, which feels good. “Until tour rehearsals started in August and I had a lot more gas,” Richards said.

Said tour will also take the Rolling Stones to Germany this summer, they come to Gelsenkirchen and Munich for two dates. The Rolling Stones are also currently working on new music, together with successor drummer Steve Jordan.

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