He said: "I did the drug thing very young and wised up very young too, because I was into drugs a little too much.
"I was entrepreneurial even then, buying quarter pounds of dope and trying to make a couple of bucks."
The 'Livin' On A Prayer' singer says a bad experience with illegal substances at an early age stopped him from becoming a user when he eventually found fame and fortune.
The father-of-four said: "Did you ever smoke dope that was laced with PCP (phencyclidine) and then have that whole summer of hallucinations? It was f***ing awful.
"That's why I've never been a drug guy. I always felt I didn't have the mental stability."
Bon Jovi recently revealed he is embarrassed to let his kids see his old 80s hairstyle.
The rock star - who has sold 120 million albums since Bon Jovi shot to fame in the early 80s - admitted he hasn't shown his children DVDs of his old concerts for fear of what they might think.
He said: "I've heard Richie Sambora (guitarist) and Dave Bryan (keyboard player) say they played their kids a DVD of our old concerts from 20 years ago, and they were really laughing. But I've never done that.
"They would probably laugh at my 80s hair. Sure they would. I laugh at it - it's part of growing up in public."
Filed under: Celebrity • Music •
