After 4 decades, vocal surgery, Jon Bon Jovi is still rocking
PASADENA, Calif. — When Jon Bon Jovi agreed to let director Gotham Chopra follow him with a documentary camera to delve into the history of his band, Bon Jovi, he didn’t anticipate it would catch him at a major low point in his career.
The band was launching a tour, and despite doing all he could do to be vocally ready, the “Livin’ on a Prayer” singer struggled through songs and couldn’t hit the notes the way he used to.
Critics noticed and wrote about it. A review from Pioneer Press in St. Paul, Minnesota, said: “It felt like he had forgotten how to sing.”
In a recent interview with The Associated Press, Bon Jovi said the reaction at the time was “heartbreaking.” After exhausting holistic options, he saw a doctor who said one of his vocal cords was atrophying.
“This was unique. It wasn’t a nodule. The strong (vocal cord) was pushing the weak one around, and suddenly, my inabilities were just exacerbated,” said Bon Jovi. He underwent major surgery and
is still recovering.
“Every day is sort of like doing curls with weights and just getting them both to be the same size and to function together.”
This year has been a turning point. In February, he performed for an audience for the first time since his surgery at the Musicares Person of the Year benefit gala where he was also named Person of The Year. The band’s next album, “Forever,” hits stores June 7, and its first single “Legendary” is out now. The four-part, “Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story,” debuts today on Hulu.
In a Q&A, Bon Jovi talks about his voice, his famous hair, the music industry and his work ethic.
AP: The work you put in behind-the-scenes is like a quarterback in between football games. Are you still rehearsing at that intensity, and how are you now?
BON JOVI: I’m doing great. The record was easy to do. The process has been steady. Would I like it to be a light switch? Yeah. I said to the doctor, ‘I want to flip the switch and be done with this.’ It’s just not
how it works. Like an athlete coming back from an ACL tear or whatever, it just takes time. The therapy is still intensive and yet I’m confident that it gets progressively better.
AP: We learn in the docuseries that your father was a barber. You’ve always been known for having good hair, especially in the 1980s. Does that come from your dad?
BON JOVI: Not in as much where he sat down and said, ‘I’ve got this idea.’ Really, I was a byproduct of what was the ’80s. Those were my baby pictures. I love laughing at them. Now, I can jokingly at least say, ‘After 40 years of a career, I still have all my hair.’ That is a good thing. Genetics works in my favor.
AP: Do you ever think about acting again?
BON JOVI: I do, on occasion. My day job then comes back to get in the way. In truth, I’ve got a big record coming out, and I’m hoping to go out on the road, so I don’t have time for it. And I respect the craft far too much to think I’m going to walk on a set and hit my marks and call that acting.
AP: Your work ethic stands out in “Thank You, Goodnight.”
We see in the early days you would sleep at the music studio. Where does that come from?
BON JOVI: If you’re not going to be great, the guy that’s coming in tomorrow night is going to be better. This isn’t a career that you should take lightly. There’s a million other young guys that are waiting to take your spot. And there are no guarantees in this business... You have to win hearts in order to win people’s hardearned dollar. If you’re asking them to stay with you for four decades, that’s a task. You better be one of the greats or else good luck.
AP: Richie Sambora is interviewed in the series. The fans love seeing him. Do you think you will ever perform together again?
BON JOVI: We never had a big falling out. He quit 10 years ago. It’s not that we’re not in contact or anything like that, but he was choosing to, as a single dad, raise his child. The door is always open if he wants to come up and sing a song. I mean, there’s many of them that we co-wrote together.
night terrors; most of the movie happens in bright daylight, every maniacal head tilt, ungodly hip swivel, and murder-by-gardening-tool calibrated for screams that end not with a gasp but a giggle. M3GAN came to play, and possibly reboot her motherboard for a sequel. Are you not entertained?”
■ Finally, if you’ve exhausted all your “Tortured Poets” analysis, you can pivot to watching a Joe Alwyn movie instead. He stars in Claire Denis’ 2022 romantic thriller “Stars at Noon,” which comes to Hulu on Sunday. Based on the 1986 Denis Johnson novel, Margaret Qualley plays an American journalist in Nicaragua during COVID-19 who starts an affair with a mysterious British guy, played by Alwyn. — AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr
Music to stream
■ Shot through the heart, and they’re to blame: Forty years after a bunch of kids from New Jersey got together and formed a great American rock band, a documentary detailing their early days, rise to fame, and best of all — breakups and breakdowns — has arrived. The only Bon Jovi documentary series to feature all members past and present, “Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story” premieres on Hulu today. Binge all four parts one after the other or dole them out slowly. However you do it, expect to have “Livin’ On A Prayer” stuck in your head for the next week.
■ Anitta, arguably Brazil’s most recognizable global
pop singer since Astrud Gilberto sang “The Girl From Ipanema” nearly 60 years ago, is releasing a new album today. It’s titled “Funk Generation,” her first since the 2022’s “Versions of Me,” and its viral hits “Envolver” and “Girl From Rio” (with its interpolation of the Gilberto classic) made her an international star. She’s long aimed to bring Brazilian sounds to the worldwide music market, and focusing on Brazilian funk is an extension of that desire. “‘Funk Generation’ is an album where I celebrate my roots. It’s where I express the power of Rio’s funk in every track its unique, danceable, and sensual beats,” she said in a statement. “It’s a rhythm born in the favelas, where I grew up, and it exudes resistance and art in every community.”
■ It is time to give Midwest MCS their flowers: Fresh off a tour opening for Migos rapper Offset, Detroit’s Skilla Baby drops a new project
today, “The Coldest.” If his trap earworm “Bae,” with its celebratory, ladies-first lyrics (“Bae, you know you’re fine, don’t you?” in the chorus) and the community-focused “Plate” are a taste of what’s to come, the release is going to be delicious. — AP Music Writer Maria Sherman
Shows to stream
■ “The Big Door Prize,” a sweet, silly dramedy about the residents of a small town turned upside down by the arrival of a machine that reveals a person’s true calling, returns for a second season on Apple TV+. Starring Chris O’dowd as a local high school teacher, “The Big Door Prize” is based on a book by M.O. Walsh and was one of The Associated Press’ TV shows worth watching in 2023. Season two of “The Big Door Prize” debuted Wednesday. Season one is also available on the streamer.
■ Two teen ghost detectives
who appear in DC comic books star in their own series called “Dead Boy Detectives.” The story follows Edwin and Charles, two longdead teens who spend their afterlife still on Earth and investigating paranormal cases. They’re assisted by a living teen named Crystal Palace who is a clairvoyant. “Dead Boy Detectives” also features Lukas Gage in an over-the-top, comedic role of the Cat King. “The Summer I Turned Pretty” actor David Iacono plays a demon. The ghostly investigations are on Netflix.
■ Idris Elba and Adam Pally reprise their “Sonic the Hedgehog” characters for the new animated series “Knuckles” on Paramount+. Elba plays Knuckles, an Echidna with super strength, who is adjusting after moving to Earth at the end of “Sonic the Hedgehog 2.” Pally is Wade Whipple, a not-so-bright deputy sheriff. “Knuckles” is part of Paramount’s efforts to expand the popular “Sonic” brand. Ben Schwartz and Tika Sumpter also reprise roles from the films. All six-episodes of “Knuckles” stream today. — Alicia Rancilio
New video games
■ Sony’s Stellar Blade takes place on an Earth that’s been mostly abandoned after an invasion by hordes of mysterious monsters called the Naytiba. Enter Eve, a sword- and gun-wielding warrior who has returned to her home planet to help out the few people left, including a scavenger named Adam. The Biblical references pile up — for example, the last city standing is Xion — but the real influence is the popular hack-and-slash epic Bayonetta. If you’ve been craving another flamboyant adventure with a beautiful woman battling hideous beasts, Korean studio Shift Up hopes it’s got you covered. Start swinging today on Playstation 5.
■ Electronic Arts’ Tales of Kenzera: Zau is less campy and more down to earth. Its protagonist, Zau, aims to become a healer and, maybe, bring his father back from the Land of the Dead. The aspiring shaman has some nifty parkour skills as well as sun and moon masks, which allow him to, respectively, launch spears and manipulate time as he fights evil spirits. Tales of Kenzera is the debut title from Surgent Studios, which was founded by voice actor Abubakar Salim, and he says it was inspired by Bantu folklore as well as his own experience with grief. The journey began Tuesday on Nintendo Switch, Playstation 5, Xbox X/S and PC. —