Clint Black is a country music superstar. He has been a mega-success with achievements galore to prove it, such as selling over 20 million records. However, Black admits in his new memoir, Killin' Time, that because of many tragedies and traumas swirling around him, he was sure that he would not live past the age of 21. He candidly shared with Fox News Digital the reasons for his formerly dour perspective on life.
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Black Was Surrounded by Negative Events
The singer coped with all kinds of misfortunes suffered by people close to him. It rubbed off, making him falsely believe that he was doomed to die young.
He explained to the outlet, "I had really come out of watching friends die — overdoses, automobile accidents — a friend got hit on a motorcycle and killed. Another one was hit on a bicycle and killed. My brother narrowly avoided being called up for the Vietnam War, which ended before he was called. And my grandfather and his brother died of cancer. It just seemed like there was a lot of that going around. And why should I be so lucky to live on and on? It didn't keep me up at night, but I lived with it."
He Had an Experience at 13 That Could Have Cost Him His Life
In Killin' Time, Clint Black describes some high-spirited boyhood fun that almost turned deadly. He and his friends plunged into water that was, in Black's own words, "a raging torrent of white water rapids." Thinking they could handle it, they suddenly quaked at the sight of a previously unseen, huge obstacle looming directly in their path.
The singer noted in his book, "We didn't see the huge oak tree in the water, just a few hundred feet downstream from where we jumped in. It must have toppled the day before in the heavy rain. Now it was creating a pocket of strong suction all around it. My friends and I could sense that sudden pull and quickly headed for the banks. The chance to get out was gone in an instant."
Furthermore, Black observed, "My friends all made it to safety, but I was unable to escape the pull of the current and was sucked into the tree and down to the bottom of the bayou. My eyes, sinuses, and lungs burned from what I guess must've been poison oak wrapped around the tree." He thought he was living his last moments. Fortunately, though, Clint Black survived.
The Singer Also Sustained a Serious Spinal Injury
Years ago, when he was mountain biking, Clint Black "crashed headfirst into a tree trunk," per the outlet. He had a major spinal injury. After multiple surgeries, again, he was alright.
Today, at 64, Black's attitude is decidedly upbeat. "...I enjoy my work. I'm excited about the future. So that's a big motivator. I get up every day and put myself to the test."
