Rock band Aerosmith has been active in the music industry since 1970, so it might be understandable that they decided in November of last year to embark on a potentially long tour that they claim could be a farewell to the touring scene. The “Aero-Vederci Baby!” tour kicked off in Israel last May, with their stops this year being in Europe and South America. It was during that South American leg that singer Steve Tyler abruptly returned stateside to deal with an unspecified medical emergency, leading to the cancellation of four remaining concert dates.
He seems to be on the mend now from his social media updates, although he would like to clarify that no, it was no Heart Attack.
Wild mass-guessing
The issue of troubling heart conditions has suddenly been put in the spotlight lately, owing to their being the cause of some prominent celebrity deaths over the past week. Towards the end of September, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner died at age 91. Just this week, another rock legend, Tom Petty, followed suit at 66. Both of them were done in by cardiac arrest. So when Steve Tyler was a no-show for Aerosmith’s Sao Paolo leg of the “Aero-Vederci Baby!” tour, speculations were rampant that it had been a seizure or a heart attack.
But the rock legend is having none of these dire rumors, despite still not opening up about his health issue.
Tyler posted an update on the Aerosmith official website and his personal Twitter page on Monday, October 2. In his post, he shut down discussion that he had a cardiac-related emergency, though he also expressed bemusement at the rumor-mongering. "It breaks my heart to have left this tour early,” Tyler wrote, with a figurative shot at the main allegation.
"I give you all an A+ for creative speculations, but I certainly did not have a heart attack or a seizure (unless Joe Perry is takin' a rippin' lead)."
— Steven Tyler (@IamStevenT) September 30, 2017
‘Not serious’
Aerosmith’s “Aero-Vederci Baby!” tour has been off to a strong start since their initial concert at Tel Aviv in May of this year.
From there, the legendary rock band traveled through Europe (including Russia) before moving on to Rio until stopping at Sao Paolo, when the band canceled the rest of the South American concerts. Steve Tyler had said that he needed to undergo “a procedure that only the doctors in the States can perform,” in his words. But his condition is not as life-threatening as a heart attack or cardiac arrest.
That said, Tyler is bummed at ruining the band’s schedule, saying that he “has never heard them play better.” There is no word yet on when Aerosmith might resume their “Aero-Vederci Baby!” tour.
