It’s no secret that smoking is extremely bad for your health. For celebrities that smoke cigarettes who depend on their singing voice, the dangers of smoking are even worse. Some famous artists choose to continue the bad habit anyway. Read on to find out the singers who smoke cigarettes and why they should stop!
Celebrities that smoke cigarettes often blame the habit on buckling under the stress and pressures of stardom. Cigarettes provide singers with temporary relief, but smoking regularly can derail their careers, impact their personal lives, and sabotage their voices.
You might be surprised to find out about some of these famous singers who smoke. Their voices may sound great now – but this isn’t guaranteed to last. Smoking causes cancer and many have found themselves with health scares due to their habit and have since quit.
Famous singers who smoke cigarettes
1 Bruno Mars
Some of you may have already asked yourself: “does Bruno Mars smoke?”
Well, the funk singer and songwriter Bruno Mars is said to be a heavy smoker. He’s a celebrity that smokes cigarettes a lot actually. When Adele collaborated with Mars to record the song “All I Ask” for her album 25, she joked that “Bruno Mars smokes like an old woman.”
2 Zayn Malik
The former 1D star is often caught on camera with a cigarette in his hand. He doesn’t show any plans to kick the habit and caused a stir among his followers back in 2018 when he posted a selfie on Instagram of himself smoking. Fans accused him of promoting smoking to his young fanbase and urged him to quit for his health and career.
3 Chris Brown
Chris Brown’s been known to smoke cigarettes. The American singer-songwriter even released a song earlier this year called “Let’s smoke.”
The singer experienced the consequences of smoking first-hand back in 2016 when his ex-girlfriend accused him of causing their daughter’s asthma by exposing her to second–hand smoke.
In an article published in the Daily Mail, Chris denied this claim and said he had quit smoking – a post he later deleted.
4 Selena Gomez
According to her friends, Selena Gomez became a heaver chain smoker while she dated the pop star, Justin Bieber.
Gomez first tried cigarettes when she had to smoke on-set as part of her role in the film, “Spring Breakers” in 2013. Speaking to Interview Magazine, she confessed “I’d never smoked a cigarette before in my entire life. It was really funny; they had to show me how to do it.”
The American singer and actress admitted she didn’t even like smoking the first time she tried it.
5 Cheryl Cole
The former Girl’s Aloud star is reportedly an on–and–off smoker. Back in 2012, before the release of her single “Call My Name”, the Metro revealed that Cheryl was instructed by her management to quit smoking before it took its toll on her vocals.
A source revealed that “Cheryl’s tried giving up before, but it was never that serious. This time around the pressure is really on – because her singing voice is her job.”
It’s not known for sure whether Cheryl took their advice and quit smoking for good, as she was later snapped smoking in 2013 by The Sun’s paparazzi.
Singers who smoke cigarettes
6 Katy Perry
Katy Perry is a singer who smokes cigarettes.
Katy Perry is regularly snapped with a cigarette in hand while at dinner or on holiday. The singer has recently been spotted smoking cigars as well as cigarettes.
According to speculation, Perry picked up the habit when she was dating Russel Brand and took to smoking under the stress of planning their wedding.
7 Lana Del Ray
Lana Del Ray doesn’t try to keep her habit a secret – she’s been known to get a cigarette out during gigs and smoke on stage.
The pop star is known for releasing tragic love songs with a cinematic quality and smoking fits in with her vintage Hollywood image.
During a show in Portland in October this year, Lana Del Ray stopped her concert mid-way through to try and find her e-vape pen. Perhaps this is a sign that the singer’s trying to quit cigarettes?
If there are celebrities that smoke cigarettes, why shouldn’t I?
If you’re serious about a career in singing, you wouldn’t jeopardise your voice by smoking. Even though, as we’ve seen so far in this article, there are plenty of celebrities that smoke cigarettes, it’s not a good idea. Cigarettes can cause endless amounts of health complications, not least to your vocal cords, throat, and lungs. Even just one cigarette a week can derail your future as a singer.
Smoking irritates and dries out your vocal cords. It makes acid reflux more likely and decreases the functioning of your lungs. This is devastating for a singer, as it means you won’t be able to reach or hold notes.
Smoking will chip away at your vocal ability and will eventually kill your singing voice. Smoke and tar will cause your vocal cords to swell and this can lead to permanent damage. It’s best to avoid smoking at all costs, or you risk your voice deepening and thinning.
Celebrities who quit smoking
It can take time but quitting smoking’s doable. These celebrities who smoked cigarettes prove that persistence pays off and their voices will thank them for it:
8 Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran’s had a few failed attempts to quit smoking over the years. But he gave up cigarettes in 2017 and has now been a non-smoker for 2 years.
Speaking on the Ellen Degeneres Show, the global award-winning singer revealed “The reason I kind of liked smoking so much was just it was a routine. Do a soundcheck, have a cigarette, do a gig, have a cigarette, have food, have a cigarette.”
He added the reason he gave up was that “I realised that I’d been smoking for 10 years and that’s bad.”
9 Liam Payne
After the birth of his son Bear, Liam Payne quit smoking in 2017 and went cold turkey. He struggled to curb the habit for good, though and caved in after less than a year.
In 2018, the former One Direction band member tried again. He reportedly enlisted the help of a hypnotherapist to help him quit.
In an article in the Daily Mail, Payne’s second attempt is said to have been successful and the singer’s “loving his new life smoke–free – it really seems as though he’s managed to give it up for good this time.”
10 Adele
Vocal powerhouse Adele was once a heavy smoker. According to the Mirror, the singer once smoked 25 cigarettes a day and feared the habit would kill her.
In 2011 Adele was forced to stop performing and had to undergo vocal cord surgery because her voice was at risk of permanent damage. Since then, she’s given up smoking for good.
Singing stars who smoke more than cigarettes – Singers who smoke drugs
Some famous singers have been caught smoking more than just cigarettes. Tobacco cigarettes are bad for your vocals and health, but smoking drugs is even more perilous. A lot of these singers have thankfully kicked the habit:
11 Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber has a history of smoking and heavy drug use. In 2015, the Canadian singer-songwriter was even caught on camera smoking a cigarette before he walked down the red carpet at the American Music Awards.
Bieber’s recently opened up about his experience with drugs – something he’s now managed to quit. In a story covered by The Independent, the star revealed he battled with depression and turned to destructive behaviour to cope. But the Grammy-award-winning artist has finally found that “life has changed for the better, thanking his faith, marriage to model Hailey Baldwin, and his support network of friends and family.”
Bieber revealed his struggles with drug misuse to fans via a candid Instagram post earlier this year. The post can be read in full below.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B17JfkkHEKt/?utm_source=ig_embed
12 Rihanna
R&B sensation Rihanna isn’t shy to showcase her smoking habits. She’s photographed smoking so often that clouds of smoke have become her motif and feature in her music videos and on the cover of her album “Talk That Talk.”
Rihanna doesn’t just smoke cigarettes, lots of her Instagram followers have noticed her being snapped holding blunts.
13 Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus openly dabbles in drugs. The 27-year-old singer vowed to stop using marijuana in 2017, admitting that taking drugs impacts her work. But she started smoking Cannabis at the end of last year when her Mum introduced her to it.
Speaking to USA Today, Cyrus admits: “My mom got me back on it. When I’m just working I don’t think I function at my highest, most intelligent, most being-able-to-be-as-aware-and-as-present, so I don’t smoke when I work.”
14 Liam Gallagher
Oasis’ Liam Gallagher is infamous for his love of a rock and roll lifestyle. The singer drinks, smokes, and takes recreational drugs – but says he’s trying to cut back.
Following his own experience with substance abuse, Gallagher’s warned other singers to not follow in his path.
He told the Daily Star: “I’ve made some howlers in my personal life, I’ve had a couple of marriages and hurt my kids and that. So personally, my advice would be don’t take too many drugs and don’t drink too much alcohol.”
You should stop that because that gets you in situations.”
15 Lady Gaga
In her Netflix documentary, Gaga: Five Foot Two, Lady Gaga fans spotted the pop star smoking. But Gaga doesn’t just smoke tobacco cigarettes; she smokes clove cigars.
Clove cigars (also known as Kreteks) are thin cigarettes made with a blend of tobacco, cloves, and other substances. They contain a numbing agent called eugenol and can be even more toxic than other types of smoking.
According to the tabloids, Beyoncé – close friends with Lady Gaga – doesn’t condone the eccentric star’s smoking habits.
16 Mel B
In an interview last year, Mel B admitted to chain–smoking and taking cocaine to get through her abusive marriage. The former Spice Girl said she took drugs while working on X Factor because she felt so low in her personal life and was battling depression.
Speaking to The Sun, she said of her drug–taking: “I was a sad, pathetic person. I was out of control. The truth was, I was kidding myself that I had found a magic formula for dealing with my life. The cocaine only made my depression worse, and I was permanently anxious and on edge.”
Since divorcing her husband in 2017, Mel B’s kicked her drugs habit. She’s still regularly caught on camera outside venues with a cigarette in hand, though.
Drug use and music
Taking drugs will have serious effects on your health and mental well-being. Some famous singers resort to taking drugs to cope with their demanding lifestyles, but substance abuse is never the answer and usually worsens their problems. Drugs can destroy a singer’s voice and their ability to perform.
Cocaine can have devastating effects on your vocal health, as well as your general health and wellbeing. When smoked, it has a similar effect to tobacco and marijuana on your throat and vocal cords – it can cause laryngitis, restrict your vocal range, and seriously damage your vocal folds.
Snorting cocaine can be just as damaging to your voice. It can cause postnasal drip (where the drug drips into your throat and vocal folds) and cause swelling and severe damage to your vocal apparatus.
Do drugs affect your voice?
Taking any type of drug – whether you smoke or snort it – will have a severe impact on your health and will, without a doubt, affect your voice. If you take drugs, you’re at risk of:
- Chronic laryngitis
- Permanent hoarseness
- Chronic cough
- Voice loss
- Limited vocal range
- Breathlessness
- Impaired breath control
- Weakened lungs
- Developing a jittery quality to your voice
So now you know all about singers who smoke cigarettes and why they shouldn’t!
If you care about your voice and dream of a career in music, it’s best to avoid smoking in any form.
Need help quitting smoking?
NHS tips to stop smoking
NHS drug addiction help
How to quit smoking guide
Practice quitting programme
It might seem like lots of famous musicians smoke and still sound great, but smoking puts a ticking time bomb on your vocal ability.
Have you quit smoking or would you like to for your career? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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