Phil Collins, 73, shares tragic health update which has devastated the Genesis star
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Phil Collins has shared a tragic health update with fans in a rare interview. The 73-year-old Genesis singer and drumming legend has becoming increasingly immobile over the past 15 years. He suffered injured vertebrae in his upper neck, which has led to crippling nerve damage. He also needs to walk with a cane or sometimes use a wheelchair.
But fans will get to see Phil as he once was - and as he is now - in a brand new documentary called Phil Collins: Drummer First. In the two-hour episode, which is available to watch now for free on YouTube channel Drumeo, Phil shares how decades of bashing the drums has taken a toll on his hands, legs and body.
After previously revealing he now finds it hard to play the drums, Phil heartbreakingly told the cameras: "If I wake up one day and I can hold a pair of drumsticks, then I’ll have a crack of it. But I just feel like I’ve used up my air miles. It’s still kind of sinking in a bit. I've spent all my life playing drums. To be suddenly not be able to do that is a shock. If I can’t do what I did as well as I did it, I’d rather relax and not do anything.".
The documentary was filmed in 2022, but has only been released this week. In it, Phil - as the title suggests - thinks of himself as a drummer first, before being a singer. This is despite him having huge global hits with songs like Against All Odds, Easy Lover, In The Air Tonight, Another Day In Paradise and Sussidio. He says: "I'm not a singer that plays a bit of drums; I’m more of a drummer that sings a bit.".
