Steven Tyler revealed in a recent Time Magazine interview that his decision to be a judge on “American Idol” was partly to give him that rush that he used to get when doing drugs. The Aerosmith singer said:

"I'm one of those people that -- obviously, since I've wound up in rehab eight times -- take dangerous things and jump in with both feet.”

His bandmates in Aerosmith were not too happy with his decision to join “American Idol” in 2010. This occurred after a well-publicized stage fall in 2009 and an admission that Tyler was back on drugs. However, Tyler used the allure of TV excitement to replace drugs:

“I think I’m an adrenaline junkie. It was a risky thing – I didn’t know whether I’d get berated.”

The rocker announced on July 12 that he is leaving the primetime show to return to playing with Aerosmith. Mariah Carey will be the new judge on “American Idol” following Tyler’s departure, as Aerosmith goes on to release their new album Music From Another Dimension. Tyler spoke about working with his bandmates again: 

"We’ve learned to accept one another on our own terms. That’s how you deal with each other and make art together. We’ve learned to think outside the box a bit, as opposed to just doing thing the same way we always have. It’s fun – I guess what it’s really called is confidence." 

Luckily for Tyler, the $20 million he reportedly lost on drugs over the years was at least in part replaced by the millions of dollars he got paid for the adrenaline rush of being an “American Idol” judge.