"I was hardcore drinking every single night," says 'Talk Dirty' singer Jason Derulo while confessing that he once lost his voice because of his partying ways.
"I was partying until crazy times in the evening then getting on the plane at six in the morning, walking in the airport like a zombie because I was drunk and hungover from the last nights," he continues, emphasising the word "nights".
I'm sat with the 'Watcha Say' star, who started his career writing songs for artists like P Diddy, Lil Wayne and Pitbull at the age of 16, as he talks about his lifestyle before the accident which could have derailed his famous dancing for good.
In January 2012, Derulo fractured his neck while rehearsing acrobatics for the biggest tour of his life and narrowly escaped paralysis.
The tour was cancelled and Derulo suddenly went from dancing on stage to wearing a brace around his neck for seven months.
Speaking to The Huffington Post UK in London, the 23-year-old hitmaker seems to be in some sense grateful for the accident that helped him get his life back on track.
"Before my accident I was on autopilot... I don't really think that was the right road. I was not being smart. Being young and somebody who travels the world, you can easily get caught up and kind of lose yourself in it all.
"I think my injury really helped to wake me up a little bit... When I was writing my second album I was drinking every single night, like hardcore. At one point I lost my voice and I couldn't record for a couple of weeks because I was drinking just coffee and alcohol."
Does Derulo, now older and wiser, have any advice for his younger chart topping peers, like Justin Bieber?
"Those are your college years and that's what a lot of college students are like. I think it's a natural progression, some people grow out of it and some don't. So would I give any advice? It's kind of hard advice to give to a kid because they're not really going to take the advice. It's just a natural thing from turning a boy into a man," he replies diplomatically.
The 'Ridin Solo' singer, who released his debut album in 2010, is now preparing for the release of his third record and has remastered his famous Michael Jackson-inspired dance moves "and then some", as he puts it.
"When I started dancing again it was tough because moves that I'd been doing my whole life became the hardest moves. It was like 'am I going to be able to do this again?', it was a really scary moment, my equilibrium was totally off," he confesses.
After a year of recovery and practising his dancing for "eight hours a day", the results of Derulo's dedication can now be witnessed in the videos for his latest releases, 'Talk Dirty' and 'The Other Side'.
The videos also feature some rather scantily-clad women, 'Talk Dirty' is all club-like grinding and butt-shaking while 'The Other Side' sees Derulo enjoy some steamy bedroom shots with a singular lady. I wonder what his girlfriend and fellow pop star Jordin Sparks thinks of them...
"She's okay with it. I think she was a little less concerned with the 'Talk Dirty' video actually than 'The Other Side', because 'The Other Side' video was intimate. Whereas 'Talk Dirty' was just a bunch of random girls doing their thing," he laughs.
Derulo's 'Talk Dirty' is out on now, his new album ‘Tattoos’ is set for release on 23 September.
