Steven Tyler Enters Rehab, Aerosmith Cancels Shows Following Relapse

Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler voluntarily checked himself into rehab after a relapse, forcing the band to cancel the first dates of their Las Vegas residency in June and July. The band is still planning to tour this fall. Tyler, 76, has openly struggled with addiction throughout his career.

“As many of you know, our beloved brother Steven has worked on his sobriety for many years,” the band wrote in a statement Tuesday. “After foot surgery to prepare for the stage and the necessity of pain management during the process, he has recently relapsed and voluntarily entered a treatment program to concentrate on his health and recovery.”

Aerosmith was forced to cancel Las Vegas performances in June and July while Tyler “focuses on his well-being.” As of Tuesday, the band is still hoping to hit the road in September and will share updates when they can. “We are devastated that we have inconvenienced so many of you, especially our most loyal fans who often travel great distances to experience our shows,” the group said. “Thank you for your understanding and for your support for Steven during this time.” Fans who bought their tickets through Ticketmaster will automatically receive refunds.

Tyler has struggled with drug and alcohol addiction for most of his career. In a 2019 interview with Haute Living, the “Dream On” singer recalled a dark moment in 1988, when his bandmates Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton, Joey Kramer, and Brad Whitford convinced him to seek help during an intervention. Around that time, Aerosmith was experiencing a resurgence in popularity thanks to the 1987 album Permanent Vacation and its 1989 follow-up Pump.

“There was a moment in ’88 where management and the band pulled an intervention on me,” Tyler explained. “They thought, ‘Get the lead singer sober, and all our problems would be over.’ So, I got sober, and you know it took me many years to get over the anger of them sending me to rehab while they went on vacation. But today because of that moment… I am grateful and owe a thanks to them for my sobriety.”

Three years into his sobriety, Tyler checked into a Sierra Tuscon program where he confronted his abusive past with women. The experience inspired the song “Janie’s Got a Gun” and the establishment of Janie’s Fund to support abused women. “I got to thinking, ‘Wouldn’t it be something if I could have a Janie’s Fund?’ So, instead of ‘Janie’s Got a Gun,’ Janie’s got a Fund and have a Janie’s House,” he said in 2019. “It was an early dream, and sure enough, 20 years later I met with some folks from Youth Villages that adopted me.”

Aerosmith started its Deuces Are Wild Las Vegas residency at Park Theater in April 2019. They brought the show to other MGM-owned venues throughout the country before returning to Las Vegas in September 2019. They were scheduled to resume the show on June 17 at Dolby Live at Park MGM.