Following an undisclosed medical emergency last week that forced Alice in Chains to cancel their spring tour dates, drummer Sean Kinney has delivered a health update over social media, which confirms he’ll be taking time off from the stage in the immediate future.
While details have not been revealed in full, Kinney experienced a “non-life-threatening medical emergency” last Thursday (May 8th) following a soundcheck at Uncasville, Connecticut’ Mohegan Sun Arena. The band were forced to pull out of the set, and likewise announced the next day that they were canceling all of their intended headline and festival appearances this month, which would have included stops at Sonic Temple and Welcome to Rockville.
At the time, they wrote that the drummer’s health was their “top priority,” and added while the “issue requires immediate attention, his long-term prognosis is positive.”
Now, Kinney has written a personalized statement, which was delivered across socials earlier today (May 15th). In it, he noted that doctors have advised him against playing live “in the short-term,” but he added: “the good news is that I’m going to be fine and I’m going to live.”
He added that he quickly went through the “five stages of grief” after receiving those orders, but “concluded that medical doctors with many hard-earned degrees on their walls might know a bit more about health than a musician with some shiny spray-painted records on his wall.”
The Alice in Chains drummer likewise thanked people for their support, and apologized to the fans for canceling the shows with such short notice.
“I was very much looking forward to getting back out there and playing with the band again, and it’s been a difficult but necessary decision to make,” he said. “I don’t personally utilize social media and I’m not particularly fond of my health issues being made public, but I understand that people are concerned.”
It’s as-yet unclear when Kinney will be cleared by doctors to perform, but Alice in Chains’ next and only booked live appearance at the moment is Black Sabbath’s “Back to the Beginning” farewell show in Birmingham, UK this summer.