28 Rock Star Phobias: What Scares Your Favorite Artists?
By 1989, the Cure had reached the stratosphere of rock stardom. Their smash album Disintegration had delivered a stream of mainstream hits, including “Pictures of You,” "Lovesong” and “Fascination Street.” While their ascent was well-earned, it was also exhausting.
Soon frontman Robert Smith would come down with a severe case of aviophobia, better known as the fear of flying. The condition limited the Cure’s tour dates, with the band venturing only to destinations accessible by boat, bus or train. There was just one catch: It was completely made up.
"Around the time of Disintegration, we were so in demand that I figured if I said I was scared of flying, we could cut down the number of things that I did,” Smith later admitted to Blender. “So for about three years, 1989 to 1992, I kept the pretense that I had this phobia about flying."
As it turns out, Smith’s choice of fabricated fear was a wise one. Aviophobia is one of the most common conditions suffered by performing artists, but it’s far from the only one. Needles, clowns, snakes, spiders and heights are some of the many fears that send shivers down rock stars’ spines.
We’ve rounded up a collection of fears and phobias belonging to 28 of rock’s biggest artists. Some have been able to conquer their anxieties, while others continue to battle them to this day.