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RICHIE KOTZEN Forced To Cancel Shows Due To Hemorrhaged Vocal Cord

April 12, 2012

Guitar virtuoso and singer/songwriter Richie Kotzen (formerly of POISON and MR. BIG) has regretfully canceled his shows planned for later this month in New York City, Long Island, Baltimore, and Redondo.

"Since I came back from Europe I have been struggling with my voice," Richie said in a statement. "Last Saturday's gig in San Juan Cap was a vocal disaster.

"I thought it was fatigue from the brutal schedule in Europe. However, the voice is getting worse and now I am having pain even speaking.

"Today I went to my doctor in Beverly Hills. He is an ear, nose, and throat specialist.

"I was concerned I may have nodes. 16 years ago I had nodes... twice... two separate surgeries.

"Today he looked at me and it is very very bad news... My left vocal cord is hemorrhaged, bruised, and bleeding.

"The bottom line is I need to be on total voice rest for the next three weeks. This means no singing and limited talking.

"I explained I had gigs next week and he told me I am the only singer he ever treated that wanted to talk about doing shows with this condition.

"He explained that by trying to sing in this condition I would likely ruin my voice for good.

"I am very sorry but I must cancel all shows for April.

"The doctor assured me that if I rest and follow his advice my voice will return back to normal within three weeks from now.

"Those of you who purchased VIP tickets will be refunded through PayPal.

"Sorry for this bad news."

Kotzen burst onto the heavy metal scene as a teenager with a lightning-fast guitar techniques. With his talents, Kotzen has played with some of the best musicians; including renowned jazz great Stanley Clarke and a three-year stint in the band MR. BIG.

"I have been lucky in the sense that I have been able to play with guys who I could learn from," explains Kotzen. "The biggest musical lesson for me was playing in a band with Stanley Clarke and Lenny White. Obviously, these guys are jazz musicians and I am not, but I learned so much from the time we recorded and toured together. My favorite rock bassist is Billy Sheehan, and we were in MR. BIG together for three years, which was awesome."

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