Music icon Phil Collins no longer has the energy to keep creating music.
The sad admission comes three years after his 2022 retirement announcement and follows almost a decade of health woes. The former Genesis front-man's decline in health stemmed from a spinal cord injury in 2007 and was propelled by his diagnosis of type 2 diabetes.
Now it seems the 74-year-old’s illnesses have stripped him of the drive to continue with music in any sort of way.
As he told Mojo Magazine last week, "I keep thinking I should go downstairs to the studio and see what happens. But I'm not hungry for it anymore. The thing is I've been sick, I mean very sick."
In a previous interview in 2009, the musician detailed the limitations of his condition.
“I can't even hold the sticks properly without it being painful, I even used to tape the sticks to my hands to get through.”
This was mentioned alongside the heartbreaking realisation that drumming has played a part in his spinal injury.
“My vertebrae have been crushing my spinal cord because of the position I drum in,” he said. “It comes from years of playing.”
Collins has long been an influential figure in the music world. First as the Genesis drummer, having auditioned and joined in 1970 at age 19. He later became the band’s frontman after the departure of Peter Gabriel in 1975.
A solo career was the next move for the drummer-come-frontman, who went out alone and found great success. His debut single ‘In the Air Tonight’ was a standout hit among many.
In Collins’ time as a solo artist, his many accolades included winning eight Grammy Awards, six Brit Awards, four Billboard Music Awards, three American Music Awards, two Golden Globes and an Oscar.
Although Collins has decided to take a step back from making music, there is still so much of his work to appreciate and be thankful for.
We wish him all the best in managing his health.
