Nikki Sixx has big plans for the free time he was previously wasting on social media – things he couldn't get done because he "was spending too much time on my phone."

The former Motley Crue bassist deleted his Twitter and Facebook accounts so that he could start "playing guitar more and focusing on photography," he said via his nationally syndicated radio program Sixx Sense, as well as "focusing on lyrics and short stories and being a better father, hanging out with my dogs, my friends."

Sixx's surprise move, which happened on his 58th birthday, meant leaving behind a half million Facebook followers as well as more than 744,000 fans on Twitter. Over the years, he had posted nearly 21,000 tweets, in between gigs with Motley Crue and his on-going new band Sixx:A.M.

Longer-range plans include "going through some of my work and maybe doing a couple of gallery showings next year," he said. That's why he's decided to remain active on Instagram, where Sixx has already shared nearly 4,000 images via nikkisixxpixx. "I'm only putting my serious photography there and not just kind of daily stuff, like we all have fun with Instagram," Sixx said. "And that's been fun for me — to kind of start weeding through my stuff. So, I'm enjoying it."

As happy as Sixx no doubt is with his decision, the same can't necessarily be said for members of his management team. "People in my office had a heart attack," he admitted. "They're, like, 'What are you gonna do?' And I go, 'Be happy?' And they're, like, 'I know. But there was 1.5 million people.' I go, 'They'll be fine.'"

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