POISON Singer BRET MICHAELS Undergoes Kidney Surgery

According to Pete Evick, the guitar player in POISON singer Bret Michaels' solo band, Bret underwent surgery on his kidneys this past week, forcing him to cancel the October 30 Rockin' 4 A Reason concert in Champaign, Illinois benefiting the Champaign County Humane Society.

Evick says: "In typical Bret fashion, the fans come first and this event in Champaign was a charity event, which made Bret to want to make the show even more. So against medical direction he tried. On the way there, he was forced to stop and seek more medical attention. Again, doctors advised him not to perform. At this point he had no choice as he simply couldn't get from where he was to the event in time. Against his own wishes, we were forced to postpone the show until Sunday [November 2].

"That part of the story alone is testimony to the sheer passion he has for his fans. Bret always says, 'I'm gonna go until I can't go anymore,' which truly is incredible in my mind. While I, unfortunately, know this drill all too well, the new guys in our band and crew saw his dedication and devotion for the first time and were blown away.

"Keep in mind, when his appendix was bursting a few years ago, our intro music was rolling and no matter what I or anyone said to him, he was going on that stage. So imagine the pain he was in Thursday that kept him from performing.

"He spent the evening in the hospital and they had to put two stents in his body. He managed to bust out of the hospital and get to Memphis just minutes before our scheduled performance time to a huge crowd at our tailgate concert on Halloween night for the Memphis Tigers. Truthfully, I was even shocked and asked him not to do this. But no, Bret insisted that the fans come first even though he could barely even say that to me because he was hurting so much.

"Then showtime came and Bret hit the stage and the show went off flawlessly. Now, to me, who's been by his side for ten years, I notice a little less 'motion.' He wasn't jumping up in the air like usual, but he still did what I guarantee nobody in half the pain he was could have done. Before I could even see if he was okay, his bus pulled out and he was off again to another hospital. Certain that the next show in Knoxville wouldn't happen on Saturday, I prepared to make the calls and post the info needed. To my surprise, I was again informed he was on his way.

"What? Are you kidding me? I've joked that he will die on that stage, but please not tonight. This time I actually begged him not to do this. We had a sold-out show and he wasn't gonna let the fans down. This argument when on for an hour… I lost.

"This time it went real bad. During the show he gave 100 percent, but he hurt himself. Jumping around with two stents was a bad idea.

"I can't explain the amount of blood or where it came from, but it was horrifying on his bus after the show. Bret looked at me and said, 'Just head to Champaign, we have to make Thursday's show up.'

"Bret was again taken to a hospital and this time given medication that would keep him down. The doctors basically refused to release him, causing us to postpone the charity event once again. Bret was truly devastated.

"It's actually honorable to me that he always brings up the concern for the fans first before addressing his condition."

He continued: "Over the last two weeks, Bret was in and out of six hospitals throughout the Midwest.

"While the last few weeks have been tragic, Bret continues to be an inspiration in his ability to push on. He's still not 100 percent, but there are no plans to postpone or reschedule any more shows this year.

"While he was in dire pain, he still played an amazing show to an enormous crowd in Vegas a few days ago."

Below is a photo Pete took of Bret in the hospital.

In recent years, Michaels, who has known about his type 1 diabetes since he was six years old, has undergone an emergency appendectomy, heart surgery and suffered brain hemorrhaging.