Event attended by Paul Monkhouse for MPM
Despite being one of the world’s biggest rock stars, Jon Bon Jovi is a man of the people. An artist capable of filling stadiums with his band, he’s often seen sweeping the floor at the Soul Kitchen charity he created with wife Dorothea and it’s that blue collar ethic that he carries everywhere with him. Most stars would sweep up to an event in a chauffeur driven limousine, surrounded by a huge entourage but not this one, choosing instead to arrive at Wembley via the Tube and walking down Wembley Way with the smallest of fuss as commuters passed not fully registering that this was him.
Returning to the stadium he’s sold out several times over, he came to speak to the UK press about yesterday’s 2026 tour announcement, the band playing Edinburgh’s Murrayfield Stadium and Croke Park in Dublin and finishing this leg at Wembley. On top of that, today marks the release of Forever (Legendary Edition), the reimagined and star studded version of Bon Jovi’s acclaimed 2024 album. There’s a lot to celebrate and feel good about, the ever youthful Jon smiling as he walked into the conference room, met with a warm and fulsome round of applause by the assembled press. Given his well publicised struggle with his voice and subsequent surgery, the journey to this point has been an epic one and this triumph feels like a hard won but shared experience.
Telling interviewer Claire Sturgess “it wasn’t until April or May this year that I knew I was able to do it”, this return to singing live had the long term aim that obviously means the world to him. Capturing that experience of playing a show, he’d rehearsed four times a week in his garage, inviting the rest of the band over when he felt ready and recent low-key shows were a dip of a toe in the water, one of them filmed and hopefully released to welcome the outfit back. For now though, plans are being made as far as next week with the tour being prepared and everything drilled to provide the best show possible.
When asked if he’ll be playing ‘You Give Love A Bad Name’ on the tour he smiles and says “yes…and I can hit those notes again!”. There will certainly be songs from Forever too, his obvious pride in the collection evident. Whilst ‘This House Is Not For Sale’ was a statement of where the band were, this rebooted version started off with a call to Robbie Williams, someone he felt really understood and experienced what they had been going through. The resultant ‘We Make It Look Easy’ sounding so good that more calls were made and the starry cast assembled. With Avril Lavigne picked for her big, powerful vocals, bringing Bruce Springsteen onboard too was done without a moment’s hesitation, the two New Jersey raised artists having a kinship since a fresh faced Jon first played with The Boss when he was still at college while Springsteen was fast on the rise to superstardom. “He’s like a big brother to me”, the pride and warmth obvious, the track ‘Hollow Man’ chosen by both parties as the one to cover, eschewing the more straightforward pick of ‘Legendary’.
There’s a really organic feel to the project that really breathes life into it, Jon stating that he wasn’t in the studio for every recording by the guests, advising “I wasn’t able to be there for them all and just wanted them to bring their own interpretation to the material”. Understanding that micro-managing these artists wasn’t going to be best for the album, he stepped back at occasions due to his schedule clashing with theirs and this freedom to create obviously inspired everyone. This commitment to their way of working obviously bore fruit as at the time of writing Forever (Legendary Edition) is the number one bestseller on Amazon’s rock charts on its first day.
With the tour dates booked in and an album he’s been thrilled to make already receiving public and critical acclaim, now is the light at the end of a three year tunnel. As he walks out onto the pitch for more photos and interviews, the overwhelming feeling is that it’s great to have him back where he belongs. Despite it being nearly the end of October, the sun is shining down on Jon Bon Jovi and the sky is blue above Wembley Stadium. Born and raised in New Jersey, London feels like his second home and that love is mutual. Life seems to be good for one of the nicest and hardest working men in music. Here’s to next year and some huge celebrations of what joins us together as only Bon Jovi know how.
