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In a new interview with BBC Breakfast, Phil Collins has ruled out performing at his induction as a solo artist into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in November. “They asked me if I would play,” he told host Charlotte Gallagher. “I said no. You have to be in top shape for something like that. You can’t just go on stage. You have to rehearse. And if you haven’t sung for a while, your voice is gone – and that wouldn’t be a good idea. I’d rather leave it alone.”
Collins has not played live since the final night of Genesis’ “The Last Domino?” tour in March 2022. Since then he has struggled with a number of health problems, but he assured Gallagher that he is now doing better. “My health is better than it has been in a long time,” he said. “I had a problem with my knee that had been with me for a while, but I still played – toured with it. At some point I had to have surgery, five times, because it either kept getting infected or something broke. So I was out of action for a long time.”
“The last 18 months have been good, but not before that,” he added. “Everything that could go wrong health-wise caught up with me at the same time. Whatever could go wrong, went wrong – but now everything is fine.”
Tour? Maybe so
As for a possible return to the stage, Collins seems torn. When asked about a new tour, he initially replied that he “actually couldn’t imagine it,” only to follow up with a somewhat more hopeful statement shortly afterwards. “Whether I go out again,” he said, “I would consider that.”
He’s also thinking about new music – which could potentially mean his first album of new material since 2002’s “Testify.” “I keep telling myself, ‘I need to get back to my home studio,'” he said. “I have a lot of lyrical ideas that I’m writing down, and there are things that are half-finished and a few that are completely finished. So there’s plenty for me to start working with.”
Earlier this month, Collins appeared on Eddie Trunk’s SiriusXM show “Trunk Nation” and revealed that being inducted into the Hall of Fame surprised him. “After the Genesis recording in 2010, I always kept track of who got in and who didn’t,” he said. “But I actually thought that was it for me. I didn’t expect it. And I’m very, very flattered and glad that I was thought of and that there were enough people on the panel to do it. I honestly don’t know exactly how it all works – but it’s very nice to be a part of it and I’m really happy.”
