Paul Rodgers Share Life After Experiencing 13 Strokes

In the previous 7 years, Paul Rodgers has experienced 13 strokes, he disclosed.

In an interview on CBS Mornings, the Bad Company vocalist shared the details of his health struggles. Rodgers revealed that he experienced 11 “minor strokes” along with two major ones, one occurring in 2016 and another in 2019. The latter major stroke left him significantly debilitated. He explained:

“I couldn’t do anything, to be honest. I couldn’t speak. That was the very strange thing. You know, I’d prepare something in my mind and I’d say it, but that isn’t what came out and I’d go, ‘What the heck did I just say?'”

A Risky Surgery: “You May Not Survive”

Medical professionals performed an endarterectomy on Rodgers, a procedure aimed at clearing plaque blockages in one of his arteries. This operation came with substantial risks, as Rodgers recounted. He explained cautiously:

“They cut the neck and [the doctor] said that he was very careful because he knew I was a singer and that when you cut the neck it’s very close to the vocal cords. They told me, they were very clear, ‘You may not come out of this alive.'”

Rodgers’ wife, Cynthia Kereluk Rodgers, described the experience as “terrifying.” She admitted:

“I was just praying. All I wanted to be able to do was walk and talk with him again. That’s all I asked for.”

Rodgers’ Recovery Timeline

After the surgery, it took six months before Rodgers could pick up a guitar again. His ability to sing took even longer to recover, but he gradually regained his skills. He reflected:

“Each thing was a step forward. Each thing that I did was an achievement. ‘Oh, I can do this. I can sing.'”

When he felt physically strong enough, Rodgers returned to the recording studio. His latest album, Midnight Rose, was released on September 22, marking his first solo LP in nearly a quarter-century.