14 DAY TRIAL // Deny as he would, the rumor that the other members of Aerosmith are thinking of replacing Steven Tyler, at least for the duration of his rehab stint and subsequent recuperation, is simply not going away. Now, word has it that Billy Idol is a strong contender for the position so, just to make sure, Tyler is threatening to sue should his bandmates replace him with someone else even for the briefest of times, Rolling Stone writes.
It is not yet known what might have caused the rift between Tyler and the other members of the iconic band, but rumors say that his addiction to painkillers and his being prone to injuries that have already benched him from touring a couple of times might have played a very important part. However, word has it that the other members are thinking of having someone in his stead, at least for as long as it takes for Tyler to get his life back in order, with Idol being one of the proposed fill-ins. The problem is, the original Aerosmith frontman is having none of that.
“Steven Tyler’s new manager has sent a letter to Aerosmith’s management threatening legal action if the band makes good on their promise to tour with a new singer, Billboard reports. In the letter, manager Skip Miller asserts that Tyler is synonymous with Aerosmith: ‘Can you imagine the manager of the Rolling Stones calling for the replacement of Mick Jagger?’ Miller writes. ‘Steven is Aerosmith, along with the others. He’s the guy the public knows. He’s the singer’.” RS writes, citing excerpts from the legal notice sent to the band’s management.
“Steven Tyler does not want lawsuits. We do not want to go in that direction. The direction we want is Aerosmith, with Steven Tyler, touring in Europe, touring Latin America, releasing a new album… This is the direction it’s all intended to go,” the letter goes on to say. As such, it echoes another statement coming from Tyler himself a short while back. “I wish to set the record straight and say that I have read reports of a rumored two-year hiatus and want to be clear that this is completely false and I will enthusiastically be writing, recording and performing with Aerosmith as soon as things are handled,” the rocker was saying, as per the same publication.
However, whether the other Aerosmith band members were not informed of this or they’re not in agreement with it, they insist Tyler is on a two-year break from the band. At the same time, rumors are picking up speed that they’re looking for someone to “temporarily” replace him as they set out on tour: first, it was Lenny Kravitz, now, it’s reportedly Billy Idol.