Legendary Bad Company frontman Paul Rodgers has opened up about a series of strokes he suffered that stole his ability to sing.
In a sit-down next to his wife, the 73-year-old singer – famous for hits such as Feel Like Making Love and a stint as lead singer for first band Free – discussed the slew of medical problems, which he said included 13 strokes. two of which are important.
The first, in 2016, left him unable to speak, he said — while the second, in 2019, prompted him to undergo an endarterectomy, “a procedure to remove plaque buildup from narrowed or blocked arteries.” according to the Cleveland Clinic.
The operation, he recalled, was dangerous; Doctors warned at the time that the incision near his vocal cords could kill him, but was likely the only way he would ever be able to sing again.
Wanting to restore the voice that made him famous, he agreed – and has been able to use his pipes ever since. Showing off his restored ability to CBShe recalled how the series of ailments left him at a loss for years.
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In a sitdown with CBS Mornings Wednesday, the 73-year-old singer – famous for hits like Feel Like Making Love and a stint as lead singer for early band Free – discussed the slew of medical issues, which he said included 13 strokes that robbed him of years. him of his distinctive voice
Legendary Bad Company frontman – seen here in 1974 – has now had his pipes restored, but revealed on Wednesday how he ‘couldn’t do anything’ with his voice for years
“There was nothing I could do, honestly,” Rodgers said Wednesday, standing next to his 61-year-old wife of 16 years, Cynthia Kereluk Rodgers.
“I couldn’t talk,” he said, “that was the strange thing. I prepared something in my head and said it, but it didn’t come out.’
“I’d say, ‘What the hell did I just say?'” he recalled — as his former beauty queen wife recalled the ordeal as “terrifying.”
“I was just praying,” she told the station in an upbeat interview in which her husband pulled out an acoustic guitar and sang to show he was back to health.
“All I wanted was to be able to walk and talk to him again,” the 1984 Miss Canada titleholder told the interviewer.
“That’s all I asked for.”
In addition to the two major strokes, Rodgers revealed how he also suffered 11 ‘mini-strokes’ over an unspecified number of years – although he didn’t go into too much detail about these conditions.
However, he did look into the two incidents in which the blood loss to his brain was much more severe, leaving him with an almost permanent speech impediment.
He had been without his voice for at least three years and said it was the second one – suffered in October 2019 – that almost killed him.
“To be honest, there was nothing I could do,” Rodgers recalled Wednesday about losing his voice, while sitting next to his 61-year-old former beauty queen wife Cynthia Kereluk Rodgers.
The first, in 2016, left him unable to speak, he said — while the second, in 2019, prompted him to undergo an endarterectomy, a procedure to remove plaque buildup from narrowed arteries.
“I was just praying,” she told the station of the operation, in an upbeat interview in which her husband pulled out an acoustic guitar and sang to demonstrate his return to health
“I couldn’t talk,” he told the station. ‘That was the strange thing. “I prepared something in my head and I said it, but that’s not what came out.”
The operation, he recalled, was dangerous; Doctors warned at the time that the incision near his vocal cords could kill him, but was likely the only way he would ever be able to sing again.
Determined to restore the voice that made him famous, he pursued it that year – and has since regained the use of his pipes.
“They told me, they are very clear, you may not get out of here alive,” he recalled, laughing off the serious memory with a characteristic joke.
‘And I said, “Oh, well, that’s a plus, isn’t it?”
His wife added that at that point all she wanted was “to be able to walk and talk to him again” — a desire Rodgers shared, which led him to undergo the surgery.
He recalled: “They cut the neck, and (the doctor) said he was very careful because he knew I was a singer and that when you cut the neck it is very close to the vocal cords.
“They told me very clearly: ‘You might not get out of here alive.'”
Still, the couple continued to hope that he would one day sing again – six months after the operation he was able to play the guitar and sing again.
Now that he’s back in form, he recently completed a new album titled Midnight Rose, which was released this week – his first solo LP in over 20 years.
“Every thing was a step forward,” he said of his unlikely return to music. ‘Every thing I did was an achievement… “Oh, I can do this. I can sing.”‘
In addition to his success with Bad Company – seen here – and Free in the ’70s, Rodgers also rose to fame playing with Queen in the 2000s, replacing the equally iconic Freddie Mercury as the band’s lead singer.
He was recently ranked number 55 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, and today he has sold more than 90 million records.
The singer – seen here with Neal Schon of Journey, Slash of Guns N Roses and Bad Company bandmate Simon Kirke – called his recovery “a miracle” and plans to keep singing
In addition to his success with Bad Company and Free in the ’70s, Rodgers also rose to fame playing with Queen in the 2000s, replacing the equally iconic Freddie Mercury as the band’s lead singer.
He was recently ranked number 55 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, and today he has sold more than 90 million records.
In an interview with CBS, he said that he hopes to add to this in the coming years.
He called his recovery “a miracle” and plans to continue singing.