Jon Bon Jovi's “Forever” tour stop was cut short after the singer said he needed to cool down.
Near the end of his nine-show residency at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, the 64-year-old rock icon apologized to fans when he had to pull the plug nearly an hour early.
Just before launching into “Livin' on a Prayer,” he told the audience hoarsely, “I'm the most grateful man in the world right now because I know I'm letting you guys down, and it's not like me to do that. I feel so fucking great, but I'm going to do one more song. I'm going to need your help. I might have to calm down because I'm so fucking hurt.”
He performed the 1986 megahit, with the audience singing the chorus in place towards the end. Bon Jovi then said, “Sorry, I have to go. Stay tuned.”
“I have to cool it down,” he continued. “It's just not going to get any better. Don't throw away your ticket stubs. I'm going to figure something out, okay? Just put it away, we'll figure out how to reschedule it.”
Bon Jovi hugged his bandmates in a group hug before leaving the stage.
Representatives for the “Bad Medicine” rocker told The Times that the concert lasted 90 minutes before ending.
“Jon Bon Jovi spoke from the stage and told fans that he had been battling a sinus infection, which led to the show's early end,” the statement continued. “As part of Bon Jovi's residency at Madison Square Garden, Jon has said on numerous occasions that it has been a pleasure to return to the band's live shows.”
Bon Jovi's “Forever” tour is the first since the eponymous leader underwent surgery to repair a vocal cord injury in 2022.
The tour kicked off on July 7 at the New York City venue and will then head overseas for a series of international stadium dates, including stops at Edinburgh's Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium on August 28, Dublin's Croke Park on August 30 and a three-night affair at London's Wembley Stadium on September 4, 6 and 9.
In 2024, Bon Jovi spoke on a Hulu panel in support of his docuseries “Thank You, Goodnight” and revealed that one of his vocal cords was “atrophying.”
“I am proud to have been a true vocalist,” said the musician. “I've sung with Pavarotti. I know how to sing. I've studied the craft for 40 years. I'm not a stylist who just barks and howls. I know how to sing.”
“So when God was taking away my ability and I couldn't understand why (I jokingly said the only thing that's ever been up my nose is my finger), you know, there's no reason for any of this,” he added.
The same year, he told the Times that his voice was a “work in progress.”
“I'm an athlete coming back from an injury: Kobe Bryant with a torn Achilles tendon. Before I got on the plane this morning, I was in vocal therapy. The goal is 2 and a half hours a night, four nights a week,” he said.
In June, he told People that he was fully recovered. “It was longer than I expected, but it had to be right. We never lost faith.”
