- [Cal Fussman] So do you know basically
how this interview works?
So it's all about wisdom.
Wisdom in your own words.
- [Johnny] My mom.
(laughing)
You know.
Eastern Kentucky girl, you know.
She taught me a lot of things.
Don't ever take any shit off anyone.
Simple.
And eloquent and right. Of course my pop,
he always just observed in a situation.
And had a kind of a calm, you know,
take on things.
I played guitar since I was a preteen,
12 or something.
It was such a huge part of my life
that at school I wasn't
really stimulated to learn.
I just wanted to play the guitar, too.
So at a certain point I remember walking
into the school with my friend late again.
I looked at him and I said,
"I don't think I'm gonna go.
"I think I'm done."
So we split.
We just left.
I dropped out for like two weeks.
I actually went back to school,
because I thought I made a huge mistake.
I was on the verge of
joining the Marine Corps.
I went to the dean and I said,
"I made a mistake and
I'd like to come back."
And he says, "Why?"
He said, "Johnny, you know,
this is what you want,
"this is what you love.
"Go and learn that, go do that.
"But don't come here and waste your time
"and my time and everybody.
"Just get outta here, man.
"Go play the guitar."
And I was like, "Okay."
And he was right on the money.
You know, there's that
old adage of no time
like the present, you know, kinda thing.
You gotta have an outlet available,
stimulus, know what I mean?
But I wasn't embarrassed about it then,
and I'm certainly not
embarrassed about it now.
I mean, you know, I was in a bad mood,
I assaulted a hotel room.
I broke a lot of stuff.
And it felt good.
I felt better afterwards.
Can't say that I would recommend it, but,
you know, you do what you
have to do in the moment.
Then you have to do it.
You know, you get old and you get
thrown out to pasture and the worst thing
you can get is, "Didn't you used to be..."
(laughing)
"Didn't you used to be Johnny Depp?"
You know.
That would be the clincher.
Subtitles by the Amara.org community
