Flavor Flav ‘super grateful to be alive’ after nearly being crushed by boulder
The Public Enemy mainstay and "Flavor of Love" star told TMZ, "God is good," and said he "came very close to death."
Flavor Flav is recovering after a recent traumatic incident when a boulder rolled down a cliffside and landed on his car.
Born William Drayton, Jr, the 62-year-old Public Enemy mainstay and former reality star could have been killed by the massive rock had it landed a few feet in another direction, according to the report from TMZ.
It struck the right side of his white Audi Tuesday, causing the rapper to momentarily lose control as he drove from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. Rainstorms had loosened the rock in La Tuna Canyon, which then tumbled down a cliff.
Ultimately, he was able to pull over to the side of the road.
“God is good,” Flav told TMZ not long after the accident, which another shocked driver had witnessed before pulling over to check on him. Flav said he was shaken up mentally, and “came very close to death, but is super grateful to be alive.”
Associates were able to help him get AAA to the scene, and his car was deemed totaled.
An original member of the legendary rap group Public Enemy, Flav is perhaps equally known now for Flavor of Love, a VH1 reality series that debuted in 2006 and lasted two seasons. It was spawned from Strange Love, which, in 2005, had chronicled his unsuccessful love affair with actress Brigitte Nielsen. On Flavor of Love, 20 women vied for Flav’s affections and the camera’s attention. That show launched several spin-offs — including a few for its sauciest first-season contestant, Tiffany “New York” Pollard — as well as Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School.
Flav was accused of domestic violence in an incident that occurred in October. Per Rolling Stone, he had previously been arrested in Henderson, an affluent suburb of Las Vegas, on domestic violence charges for grabbing a woman who lives in that household and poking his finger in her nose and face.
Those charges were dropped on Dec. 8 after he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge — the non-violent act of grabbing a cell phone during the incident, which is a misdemeanor.
His attorneys, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld said then in a statement, “Today the domestic violence charge against Mr. William Drayton, p/k/a Flavor Flav, was dismissed. Mr. Drayton acknowledged the non-violent act of grabbing a phone during the incident in question, a misdemeanor, and the case was closed by the Court. Mr. Drayton and his family are grateful to bring an amicable close to this matter and appreciate everyone’s support as he continues his one-year journey of sobriety.”
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