Alter Bridge frontman Myles Kennedy has opened up about one of the most pivotal decisions of his early career — turning down the opportunity to audition for Velvet Revolver — and how his ongoing struggle with tinnitus played a central role in that choice.
In a recent interview with Metal Hammer, Kennedy looked back on the early 2000s, a period when he had briefly stepped away from music after being diagnosed with tinnitus, a chronic condition that causes persistent ringing in the ears and can seriously impact hearing health.
At that time, members of the newly forming supergroup Velvet Revolver — including Slash and other former Guns N’ Roses members — were seeking a vocalist. Kennedy was approached about auditioning, but he ultimately decided not to pursue it. “It was very difficult to turn that opportunity down,” he recalled, adding that although his friends thought he was “crazy” for passing up such a big break, he simply didn’t feel mentally prepared. “I knew that I wasn’t mentally prepared, at least at that stage, to jump into something of that magnitude and do it justice,” he said.
Kennedy described that period as a challenging time for him personally, especially after his tinnitus diagnosis, which he found “very disturbing initially, especially mentally.” His biggest concern was preserving the hearing he still had, knowing that loud environments and high volumes — inevitable in rock music — could make his condition worse. “Fortunately, since I’m very careful with how loud I listen to music, I’ve managed to keep it in check,” he added.
Rather than jumping into Velvet Revolver, Kennedy decided to take a step back from the industry. That hiatus didn’t last long: in late 2003, he accepted an invitation from Mark Tremonti, former guitarist of Creed, to join a new band that would eventually become Alter Bridge. Kennedy explained that by then, enough time had passed for him to feel ready, and he recognized early on that Alter Bridge was a project that suited his own voice and songwriting sensibilities.
Alter Bridge released their debut album One Day Remains in August 2004, which quickly achieved Gold status in the U.S. The band has maintained a steady lineup since its debut, with Kennedy and Tremonti both expanding their creative work through side projects over the years.
Interestingly, while Kennedy skipped the Velvet Revolver audition, his path later crossed with Slash’s when he contributed vocals to the guitarist’s self-titled solo album in 2010 and became his touring vocalist — a collaboration that continues to this day. Kennedy admits he still doesn’t know exactly how Slash first discovered him more than two decades ago.
Most recently, Kennedy released his third solo album The Art Of Letting Go in October 2024, and Alter Bridge are preparing to release their eighth studio record, Alter Bridge, due out January 9, 2026. The band plans a major touring cycle, including European dates from January through March, a spring North American run, and summer festival appearances — capped by the inaugural Blackbird Festival at Cardiff Castle in Wales on June 27, 2026.
