While classic rock fans are thrilled that UK supergroup Bad Company are finally getting inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame this Saturday, November 8, 2025, viewers watching at home won’t get to see the full group accept the honors: singer Paul Rodgers has announced that he’ll be skipping the ceremony. Through a comment on the band’s official X.com account, Rodgers announced that he was skipping the ceremony in order “to prioritize my health.”

Why is Paul Rodgers skipping the ceremony?

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Rodgers, 75, announced in his X.com statement, “My hope was to be at the Rock & Rock Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and to perform for the fans, but at this time I have to prioritize my health. I have no problem singing, it’s the stress of everything else. Thanks for understanding. Simon along with some outstanding musicians will be stepping in for me – guaranteed to rock.”

“My hope was to be at the Rock & Rock Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and to perform for the fans, but at this time I have to prioritize my health. I have no problem singing, it’s the stress of everything else. Thanks for understanding.”

– Paul Rodgers pic.twitter.com/tuOGifELIZ

— Bad Company (@officialbadco) November 3, 2025

Does Paul Rodgers have health problems?

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Sadly, Rodgers has been struggling with his health for most of the past decade. He has had two major strokes — one in 2016 and one in 2019 — as well as 11 minor strokes. In 2023, he told CBS News that the strokes left him without the ability to speak: “I couldn’t do anything to be honest. I couldn’t speak. That was the very strange thing. You know, I’d prepare something in my mind and I’d say it, but that isn’t what came out and I’d go, ‘What the heck did I just say?'”

He did regain the ability to sing and play guitar, and the music icon — who was also a member of Free and the Firm — released a solo album, Midnight Rose, in 2023.

Did Paul Rodgers turn down a previous invite to be inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame?

In a 2023 interview, Rodgers admitted that years ago, when the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame was first being conceptualized, he turned down an offer from Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, who also co-founded the RRHOF. In an interview with The Eddie Trunk Show, Rodgers recalled Ertegun asking him, “Paul, we’re making this museum of rock ‘n’ roll. Do you guys want to be part of it?” Rodgers told him “I don’t think rock ‘n’ roll belongs in a museum,” and refused a few follow-up offers to be inducted. These offers all had to be quite a long time ago, as Ertegun has been dead for 19 years.

Who is still alive from Bad Company?

Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke are the only living members of the original lineup of Bad Company. Bassist Boz Burrell died in 2006, at the age of 60, and Mick Ralphs, guitarist, just passed away on June 23, 2025, at the age of 81.

Both Rodgers and Kirke were originally scheduled to perform, in what would have been the first live Bad Company performance since 2019, when the band performed live in Vegas.

Where can you watch the 2025 Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony?

The ceremony, which will take place in Los Angeles at the Peacock Theater, will occur on Saturday, November 8, 2025. Disney+ subscribers can watch the ceremony live from 8pm EST onwards, and see performances by An ABC primetime special will air on New Year’s Day, January 1, 2026; viewers can catch it the following day on Hulu.