JOE PERRY Explains Why JOEY KRAMER Won't Take Part In AEROSMITH's Farewell Tour

In a recent interview with Byrd of 97.1 FM The Drive, AEROSMITH guitarist Joe Perry explained why it's unlikely drummer Joey Kramer, who sat out the band's recent round of "Deuces Are Wild" residency shows in Las Vegas, will take part in AEROSMITH's upcoming "Peace Out" farewell tour. "His heart's in the right place, but, listen, playing the drums is an athletic event," Joe said. "And there's a certain point where you're just kind of, like,… every joint starts to give out, man. So at this point we're not thinking he's gonna be there. We'll see."

When AEROSMITH announced its farewell tour earlier this week, the band said about Kramer's absence from the upcoming trek: "While Joey Kramer remains a beloved founding member of AEROSMITH, he has regrettably made the decision to sit out the currently scheduled touring dates to focus his full attention on his family and health. Joey's unmistakable and legendary presence behind the drum kit will be sorely missed."

For the past year, AEROSMITH's longtime drum tech John Douglas has been filling in on drums for Kramer, whose wife, Linda Gail Kramer, died last June at the age of 55. No cause of death has been revealed.

In 2020, Kramer sued the rest of AEROSMITH for breach of contract, saying he was being blocked from performing after suffering "minor injuries" the previous year. He sought an injunction after they announced they would play without him at the 2020 MusiCares Person Of The Year and at the Grammy Awards. He lost that case.

The "Peace Out" run of 40 dates will start on September 2 in Philadelphia and wrap next year on January 26 in Montreal. Special guests THE BLACK CROWES will join AEROSMITH for the entire tour, which will celebrate AEROSMITH's five decades of music.

Produced by Live Nation, the tour will include stops in iconic arenas across the U.S. and Canada, including Los Angeles's Kia Forum, New York's Madison Square Garden, Dallas's Moody Center, Seattle's Climate Pledge Arena, Chicago's United Center, Toronto's Scotiabank Arena, and more. A highlight of the tour will be a stop in Boston for a special hometown show on New Year's Eve 2023.

AEROSMITH announced its final tour by creating a "breaking news" YouTube video featuring Eminem, Slash, Dolly Parton, Bill Burr, Ringo Starr and other entertainment stars expressing their disbelief that this really is farewell. At the end of the clip, AEROSMITH frontman Steven Tyler can be seen looking into the camera and declaring, "And if you think we're joking … dream on."

Most recently, AEROSMITH wrapped its critically acclaimed Las Vegas residency at Dolby Live at Park MGM. Ahead of the residency, AEROSMITH returned to its hometown in Boston to perform a record-breaking one-off show at Fenway Park as part of the legendary band's 50th anniversary celebrations. With over 38,700 people in attendance, it was the most tickets sold to date for a show at the iconic venue.

In May 2022, AEROSMITH announced that Tyler had entered a treatment program following a relapse, prompting the band to put their Las Vegas residency on a temporary hold.

Tyler had been struggling with drug and alcohol addiction since the mid-1980s. Over the course of the last four decades, he had relapsed several times, including in the early 2000s and 2009.

Joey has had his own health difficulties in recent years. Kramer suffered a health scare back in 2014, which was initially reported to be "heart-related complications".