Bon Jovi doesn’t want to be ‘fat Elvis’ onstage as he worries vocal cord surgery may end live singing

 

Jon Bon Jovi is “Livin’ on a Prayer” that his voice returns to its prime singing days after vocal cord surgery put a halt on live singing in 2022.

Jon, whose full name is John Francis Bongiovi Jr., is on the road to recovery after suffering an atrophied vocal cord which required throat surgery and rehabilitation.

He’s realizing, though, that performing live may be more challenging on his instrument.

“There is a big difference between being in a studio and going out on the road,” he told the Sunday Times. “We have just recorded a new album. I sing in vocal therapy every day.”

He added, “But I want to perform for two and a half hours a night, four nights a week — and I know how good I can be, so if I can’t be that guy … put it this way, I don’t ever need to be the fat Elvis.”

Elvis Presley commanded the stage and the silver screen as the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.”

His later years in life were marred by a prescription drug dependency and severe health issues all while maintaining a physically demanding schedule.

4
Jon Bon Jovi had vocal cord surgery which put a halt on live singing in 2022.Jimmy Kimmel Live / youtube

4

Jon is hoping that his voice returns to its prime singing days.WireImage
He died on Aug. 16, 1977, at a hospital in Memphis, after being found unconscious at his Graceland mansion.

He was 42.

Despite a new album release in two months, the “Bad Medicine” singer was candid about his future with the band.
“But I want to perform for two and a half hours a night, four nights a week — and I know how good I can be, so if I can’t be that guy … put it this way, I don’t ever need to be the fat Elvis,” Jon said.Getty Images
“This is the first time I’m saying this. If the singing is not great, if I can’t be the guy I once was … then I’m done,” he said. “And I’m good with that.”

Jon reflected on the decades of touring he’s spent with Bon Jovi, and remained hopeful yet painfully aware that he’ll have to make a decision about singing in front of audiences soon.

“I can tell you that 60 is different from 50 and my current concern is that I’m going to forget how to sing,” he said. “I’ll be crushed if I can’t sing live again, but what does a quarterback do when faced with the last ball he’ll ever throw? That’s the situation I’m in.”

4
Bon Jovi will be “crushed” if he can’t sing live again.Jimmy Kimmel Live / youtube
He added, “I want to look back on 40 years of Bon Jovi, look forward to the new album and appreciate everything. That’s my hope: to find joy in it all.”

The Hulu docuseries, “Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story,” premieres April 26 in four parts.

Bon Jovi’s 16th studio album, “Forever,” will be released June 7.