What is Steven Adler's Net Worth?
Steven Adler is an American musician who has a net worth of $10 million. Steven Adler is best known for being the drummer for the rock band Guns N' Roses. He also served as a songwriter for the band, which received worldwide attention beginning in the 1980s. However, Steven was asked to leave the band in 1990 when his heroin addiction began to get in the way of his work ethic and musical abilities. With Guns N' Roses, Adler released the studio albums "Appetite for Destruction" (1987) and "G N' R Lies" (1988). After his removal, Steven took up with his former band, Road Crew, before briefly joining BulletBoys. In 2003, he joined the band Suki Jones, which was later renamed Adler's Appetite. That band released the EPs "Adler's Appetite" (2005) and "Alive" (2012). Steven also released the 2012 album "Back from the Dead" with the band Adler. Steven was a cast member on the VH1 reality series "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew" (2008; 2011) and the spin-off "Sober House" (2009), and he has appeared in the films "Beyond Desire" (1995), "Dahmer vs. Gacy" (2010), and "What Now" (2015). Adler published the memoir "My Appetite for Destruction: Sex, and Drugs, and Guns N' Roses" in 2010. In 2012, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame alongside his former Guns N' Roses bandmates.
Early Life
Steven Adler was born Michael Coletti on January 22, 1965, in Cleveland, Ohio. He is the son of a Jewish-American mother (Deanna) and an Italian-American father (Michael), and he has an older brother named Kenny. After Michael Sr. left the family, Deanna and the children moved to Los Angeles. Adler was initially named after his father, but Deanna changed his name when she went back to her parents because in Jewish naming customs, parents are forbidden from naming children after living relatives. After Deanna married Melvin Adler, Melvin adopted Steven and Kenny. Deanna and Melvin later had a son named Jamie. Adler lived in the San Fernando Valley until he was 13 years old, then he was sent to Hollywood to live with his grandparents because of bad behavior. He attended Bancroft Junior High School, where he became friends with Saul Hudson (now famously known as Slash). Adler returned to his parents' home after his freshman year of high school, and he learned to play drums as a teenager.
Guns N' Roses
After he returned to Hollywood in 1983, Steven auditioned for the metal band London. He wasn't chosen for the band, so he decided to form his own group, Road Crew, with Slash. Bassist Duff McKagan joined the band after answering an ad Steven and Slash placed in a newspaper. The group disbanded the following year because they couldn't find the right lead singer. Adler briefly joined Axl Rose's band Hollywood Rose, which also included guitarist Izzy Stradlin. In 1985, Adler and Slash joined Rose, Stradlin, and McKagan in Guns N' Roses, and the band signed a deal with Geffen Records in early 1986. Guns N' Roses released their debut album, "Appetite for Destruction," on July 21, 1987, and it reached #1 on the "Billboard" 200 and Top Hard Rock Albums charts as well as the New Zealand Albums chart. The album was certified Platinum or higher in more than a dozen countries, and it went 18× Platinum in the U.S. "Appetite for Destruction" featured the hit singles "Welcome to the Jungle," "Sweet Child o' Mine," and "Paradise City," and at the time it was the best-selling debut album in the U.S. in the history of the Recording Industry Association of America ( RIAA). The band's second album, 1988's "G N' R Lies," was certified 5× Platinum in the U.S. and Platinum in Argentina and New Zealand, and it reached #2 on the "Billboard" 200 chart. The single "Patience" was a top 10 hit in seven countries.
Steven was briefly fired from Guns N' Roses in 1990, but he was allowed back in the band after he signed a contract in which he promised to end his drug use. By the time the band began recording the song "Civil War" for the 1991 album "Use Your Illusion II," Adler's addiction was so severe that he couldn't perform, and he was formally fired in July 1990.
After Guns N' Roses
After his departure, Steven reformed his old band Road Crew with singer Davy Vain, bassist Ashley Mitchell, and guitarists Jamie Scott and Shawn Rorie. Though they recorded an album and had interest from major labels, Road Crew disbanded due to Adler's drug problems. In July 1991, Steven sued his former Guns N' Roses bandmates, stating that he was fired because he had been on an opiate-blocking drug for his detox, and it made it difficult to concentrate. He told "Classic Rock" in 2005:
"I was told that every time I did heroin, the band would fine me $2,000. There was a whole stack of papers, with coloured paper clips everywhere for my signatures. What these contracts actually said was that the band were paying me $2,000 to leave. They were taking my royalties, all my writing credits. They didn't like me anymore and just wanted me gone. That's why I filed the lawsuit – to get all those things back."
In 1993, the lawsuit was settled out of court, and Adler received a check for $2.25 million in back-payment. The band also agreed to pay him 15% of the royalties for the music he recorded before his firing.
In 2003, Steven joined the band Suki Jones, which was renamed Adler's Appetite due to the fact that they played songs from the "Appetite for Destruction" album and many people didn't realize that the band featured Guns N' Roses' former drummer. Adler's Appetite released a self-titled EP in 2005, followed by the EP "Alive" in 2012. Steven performed on Slash's 2010 self-titled solo album, and in 2011, he formed the band Adler, which released the album "Back from the Dead" in 2012.
In July 2016, Steven performed with Guns N' Roses when the band's "Not in This Lifetime… Tour" stopped in Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Nashville, and Buenos Aires. The band disbanded in 2016, and Adler's Appetite reunited in 2018 in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the album "Appetite for Destruction."
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Personal Life
Steven was married to Cheryl Swiderski from June 7, 1989, to 1990. He then wed Carolina Ferreira on January 23, 2002. In May 1995, Adler was arrested for heroin possession, and the following year, he suffered a stroke and was briefly in a coma after taking a speedball. This caused the left side of his face to be temporarily paralyzed. In 1997, he was arrested on a domestic violence charge, and he received a sentence of three years' probation and four days in jail and was ordered to attend drug counseling. In 1998, Steven was charged with battery for attacking two women in separate incidents, and he was sentenced to 150 days in prison as well as three years' probation. Protective orders were issued for both victims, and a judge ordered Adler to attend domestic violence counseling for a year. In June 2019, Steven was hospitalized after what was reported to be a possible suicide attempt. Officer Jeff Lee stated, "Upon arrival, LAPD officers determined that there was no crime and the incident was being treated as a medical emergency only. The subject was transported to a local hospital with a non-life-threatening injury." A Los Angeles Fire Department spokesperson confirmed that they were called to Adler's home for a possible stabbing. The stab wound was reportedly in Steven's stomach, and his rep later said that it was an accident.
Awards and Nominations
In 2011, Adler and his "Dahmer vs. Gacy" co-stars won the award for Outstanding Cast Performance at the Action on Film International Film Festival. During his time with Guns N' Roses, the band earned a Grammy nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance for "G N' R Lies" (1990) and won a "Billboard" Music Award for Top Pop New Artist (1988). They received four MTV Video Music Award nominations, winning Best New Artist in a Video for "Welcome to the Jungle" (1988) and Best Heavy Metal Video for "Sweet Child O' Mine" (1989). "Sweet Child O' Mine" was also nominated for Best Group Video, and that year "Paradise City" earned a nomination for Best Stage Performance in a Video. The band won American Music Awards for Favorite Pop/Rock Single for "Sweet Child o' Mine" (1989), Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Album for "Appetite for Destruction" (1990), and Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Artist (1990), and they earned BRIT Award nominations for Best International Newcomer, Best International Group, and Best Music Video for "Paradise City" in 1990.
Real Estate
In 2015, Adler paid $1.337 million for a 2,700+ square foot home in the Studio City area of Los Angeles. The home includes three bedrooms and three bathrooms.
