Matt Roberts' father thought former 3 Doors Down man had beaten addiction

Matt Roberts performing with 3 Doors Down, 2011 (Image credit: Getty)

The father of late 3 Doors Down ex Matt Roberts says he thought his son had “beaten” anxiety and his addiction to prescription drugs.

The guitarist was found dead in a Wisconsin hotel room after a suspected accidental overdose. He was in town for a scheduled appearance at a charity gig. His father Darrell, who was staying in the room next door, said police came to deliver the news to him the next day.

He tells CNN: “I was awakened at 8:50am by some detectives beating on my door. It’s always scary as a parent, they were in suits and that’s when they told me.

“They asked me if Matt Roberts was my son, I said yes, and they said, ‘We have bad news to tell you, Matt deceased last night.‘”

Darrell continues: “I know he had prescription drug addiction. He suffered greatly from anxiety.

“It’s crazy as a performer – he never liked crowds or liked places he didn’t know about as a baby, as a child, and this was his way of dealing with it and me and him talked about it often. I thought he had beaten it all.”

Roberts exited 3 Doors Down in 2012 citing health issues, and saying the band would “always have a special place in my heart.” Frontman Brad Arnold said the guitarist would “always be welcome back with open arms.”

In March, Arnold told TeamRock: “It was difficult. I’ve known him my entire life. He’s my cousin, actually. He and I used to play baseball together. Y’know, we just kinda went our own ways. But we wish him all the best in everything that he does.”

Chet Roberts took Matt Roberts’ place. 3 Doors Down are currently touring in support of sixth album Us And The Night, released in March.

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Former TeamRock news desk member Christina joined our team in late 2015, and although her time working on online rock news was fairly brief, she made a huge impact by contributing close to 1500 stories. Christina also interviewed artists including Deftones frontman Chino Moreno and worked at the Download festival. In late 2016, Christina left rock journalism to pursue a career in current affairs. In 2021, she was named Local Weekly Feature Writer of the Year at the Scottish Press Awards.