Jon Bon Jovi is feeling back to his best after a multi-year battle with vocal cord issues. Now, the rock legend has added additional dates to his 'The Forever Tour.' Those dates include stops in Melbourne, Sydney, London, New Jersey, and Toronto.
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However, at the height of his issues, there didn't always seem to be any light at the end of the tunnel. In fact, there was a point where the rock legend couldn't even get through a rendition of 'Happy Birthday.'
"I didn't lose faith, but had [my doctor] told me it was going to be four years, I might've contemplated saying, 'It's been great' [and leaving his office]," Bon Jovi said during a recent interview on A Current Affair, which is an Australian program. "Because the process was so damn long and I would see the progress, but it was incremental. It was inches. I couldn't sing 'Happy Birthday.'"
Still, it's been a long road back to this point for Bon Jovi. In fact, it's been four years since he underwent surgery. As his interview continued, Bon Jovi detailed his road back to the stage, and why he wouldn't tour during his vocal cord issues.
"I've gone through hell and I would not, could not, compromise the legacy. I could not, would not go out and hold the mic out to the crowd. Holding ourselves to a standard that we've had for some 40 x years now, it's important to me to be the best we can be," he said. "I realized that it took four years. That four years was my doing. I don't go out [on tour] after the two years. People were saying, 'It's fine, let's go.' Ask the promoter Paul Dainty how many times he's had on a piece of paper a tour booked and I've said, 'No, can't do it. Just don't do it.' And after the four-year process I was like, 'Yeah, it's ready.'"
Jon Bon Jovi Is Loving Being Back on Stage
When you've been as successful as Bon Jovi, being on the stage is a huge part of your self-identity. Therefore, it's understandable that he felt like something was missing as he battled his vocal cord issues. Now, though, the legendary rocker is loving his return and embracing the fact that he can sing once again.
"I can actually sing without thinking about singing," he detailed. "In 2019 and 2022 for sure, every note I was white-knuckling that microphone. 'Is that in tune? Is that good enough? ... That was real every night. It was not worth doing. So when I walked off that stage in Nashville and I said to [wife] Dorothea, 'That was pretty good!' I believed it. I was like, 'That's pretty good.' She goes, 'No. It wasn't.'"
Having Bon Jovi back on tour is great for rock fans worldwide. Everybody wins in this development. Hopefully, his vocal cords can hold up, and he can continue being the showman he is for as long as he wants to, before eventually hanging up the microphone.
I'd take him any way I could get him and his band! If I had that kind of money, I'd gladly spend it on that package!