Vince Neil says he suffered a stroke, relearned to walk; Mötley Crüe Vegas residency postponed

Vince Neil, the frontman of Mötley Crüe, said he suffered a stroke the day after Christmas that left the left side of his body paralyzed and forced the band to postpone a planned Las Vegas residency.

In an interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal published Friday, Neil, 64, said the episode began while he was asleep. "I had a stroke. My whole left side went out," he told the newspaper, describing months of physical therapy and rehabilitation that included learning to walk again.

Neil said doctors initially told him they did not expect him to return to the stage, but he refused to accept that prognosis. "I had to learn to walk again, and that was tough," he said. He described moving from being carried to a wheelchair, to a walker, to a cane, and then to no assistive device. Neil told the paper he is now "90 to 95% to where I was before" and that his voice was not affected by the stroke.

The health scare prompted Mötley Crüe to delay a residency at Dolby Live at Park MGM that had been scheduled for March 28 through April 19, 2025. Live Nation announced the residency will take place Sept. 12 through Oct. 3. The band also canceled a May performance at the Boardwalk Rock festival in Ocean City, Maryland; the band issued a statement in April saying Neil's health came first but did not disclose the cause at the time.

Mötley Crüe members Nikki Sixx, Tommy Lee and John 5 issued a statement when the May cancellation was announced, saying, "Vince's health comes first, and we fully support him in prioritizing his recovery. We sincerely apologize to everyone who was looking forward to the show and appreciate your understanding."

Neil returned to the stage for a concert in Bethel, New York, last month. Video and photographs from that performance prompted concern from some fans, with social media comments questioning whether he appeared well and suggesting there might be lingering neurological effects. Neil acknowledged the difficulty of retraining his body to respond to his brain's commands, saying, "It takes a while to get your brain to start moving your legs, for them to do what your brain wants to do. You try to walk, but it doesn't come out right."

The revelation about the stroke follows a separate incident earlier in the year involving a crash at Scottsdale Airport in February in which a private jet owned by Neil collided with another aircraft on the runway. Neil was not aboard; his then-girlfriend, Rain Andreani, and others were injured and the pilot was killed. The pair reportedly split in May after 15 years together.

Neil postponed the residency in an emotional March statement in which he apologized to fans and said his health was his top priority. The band has said it looks forward to his full recuperation and a return to the stage.

Medical experts say recovery after a stroke varies widely depending on how quickly treatment is received, the severity and location of the brain injury, and the intensity of rehabilitation. Neil's account that his voice remained intact is consistent with strokes that affect motor function without damaging speech centers, though recovery timelines can be unpredictable. The band and Live Nation have scheduled the rescheduled residency for fall, and ticketing information is available through Live Nation's official channels.