SAMMY HAGAR Clarifies Comment That He Is Willing To 'Get Sick And Even Die' To Help The Economy

Sammy Hagar has clarified his comments in a recent interview in which he said that he's willing to sacrifice himself to COVID-19 if it means saving the economy.

Hagar was one of several musicians interviewed by Rolling Stone about staying at home instead of touring while coping with the uncertainties of the pandemic.

"I'm going to make a radical statement here. This is hard to say without stirring somebody up, but truthfully, I'd rather personally get sick and even die, if that's what it takes," Hagar began.

"We have to save the world and this country from this economic thing that's going to kill more people in the long run. I would rather see everyone go back to work. If some of us have to sacrifice on that, okay."

Hagar suggested that if the cost of human lives is necessary for the economy to fully recover, he's willing to die from the coronavirus. "I will die for my children and my grandchildren to have a life anywhere close to the life that I had in this wonderful country. That's just the way that I feel about it," he continued. "I'm not going to go around spreading the disease. But there may be a time where we have to sacrifice. I mean, how many people die on the Earth every day? I have no idea. I'm sorry to say it, but we all gotta die, man."

Sammy also said that he would be willing to play live concerts in packed venues "before there's a vaccine, if it's declining and seems to be going away."

Earlier today, Hagar released a statement in which he revealed that the Rolling Stone interview was done a month and a half ago and insisted that he will do his part in "getting back to work in a safe and responsible way and getting this economy rolling again."

Sammy said: "Hey, Sammy here. Earlier in the week Rolling Stone ran a compilation piece from their Quarantine Q&A series. I did that interview a month and a half ago, things change very fast right now, so I wanted to clarify and put a few things into context now.

"I did that interview May 8th when we were already several weeks into the stay-at-home, which my family and I took very seriously, and things were starting to look up, the curve was beginning flattening. So when I was asked if I'd be comfortable enough to get back onstage before a vaccine was out, I was cautiously optimistic. I said, 'Yeah, not too soon. I want to make sure it's not escalating. When it's declining and seems to be going away.'

"Big picture, it's about getting back to work in a safe and responsible way and getting this economy rolling again. I will do my part. I stand by that. I employ 200 people directly and when we tour even more. Like everything today, it's a watch and see over the next few months but we remain cautiously optimistic that with the right improvements and safety measures in place, we might be able to play shows this year. That said, as things change, for the better or worse, we will appropriately adjust our plans."

Last month, SAMMY HAGAR & THE CIRCLE's U.S. tour with NIGHT RANGER was officially canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic which is sweeping the globe.

Joining Hagar in THE CIRCLE are bassist Michael Anthony (VAN HALEN, CHICKENFOOT),drummer Jason Bonham (BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION, JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EVENING) and guitarist Vic Johnson (THE WABORITAS).

THE CIRCLE's first album of all-original material, "Space Between", was released in May 2019 via BMG.