For over half a century, Queen has represented the absolute gold standard of live stadium rock. Yet, following the conclusion of their recent touring cycles, fans worldwide have been left wondering if the legendary pairing of drummer Roger Taylor, guitarist Brian May, and powerhouse vocalist Adam Lambert will ever hit the road again.
In a recent appearance on BBC Radio 2’s The Rock Show With Shaun Keaveny, the 76-year-old Taylor gave a candid look behind the curtain of the rock-and-roll juggernaut, explaining that while the desire to play remains completely intact, the future of Queen’s live performances is ultimately out of his hands.
“Never Say Never”
When pressed about whether fans can expect Queen to gear up for live shows in the near future, Taylor was refreshingly honest about the sheer scale of organizing a modern-day rock tour.
“Well, it is a big machine to gear up, if you know what I mean,” Taylor admitted. “But, yeah, really, I think it’s more down to Brian than me. I love playing live. I enjoy it, always have. It’s really how he feels about it. So if we both wanna do it, I’d be happy to. But we’ll see. Never say never. We have been working for a while with [singer] Adam Lambert, who has the most incredible voice.”
The partnership between Queen’s founding members and the American Idol alum has been a spectacular success story since it officially began under the moniker Queen + Adam Lambert in 2012.
The Standby: Adam Lambert’s Perspective
For his part, Lambert is entirely willing to step back onto the stage whenever the call comes. Speaking to Smooth Radio, Lambert—who dropped his sixth studio album, Adam, via his own label distributed by The Orchard—detailed his unique role within the legendary lineup.
“There’s nothing on the books with Queen,” Lambert revealed. “We’ve never had the conversation saying we’re done, but there’s nothing actually planned right now. It’s sort of up to them. They’re the boss. I’m the guest. If they call me and say, ‘Hey, we wanna tour again,’ I’ll say, ‘Yeah, sure, I’d love to.'”
Lambert also reflected on the massive privilege of sharing the stage with rock royalty as a career-defining “side job.”
“I’m blessed. I’m very lucky. Everything’s worked out lovely for [me],” Lambert said. “Getting out there with Queen is a huge honor. It’s a huge opportunity to celebrate one of the greats, Freddie Mercury, who I love, and to give Brian and Roger sort of the facility to go and perform their songs and bask in their legacy, and to just have the audience singing along with every song… And then when I get to do my stuff, it’s scratching a different itch. I get to write about my own life… I’m lucky I get both.”
The Health and Safety Realities of Brian May
The hesitation to immediately jump back into global touring stems from complex real-world variables, particularly surrounding the 78-year-old Brian May. This past January, May heavily downplayed the likelihood of Queen coming back to the United States, citing growing societal concerns.
“America is a dangerous place at the moment, so you have to take that into account,” May told the Daily Mail. “It’s very sad because I feel like Queen grew up in America and we love it, but it’s not what it was. Everyone is thinking twice about going there at the moment.”
Beyond international logistics, May’s personal health has factored significantly into the band’s long-term touring stamina. In 2024, May suffered a minor stroke that temporarily left him unable to use his left arm, though he miraculously regained full movement to play the guitar again.
The stroke added to a string of terrifying medical emergencies for the legendary guitarist over the last six years. In 2020, May survived a near-fatal heart attack after discovering three of his arteries were heavily congested and required stent surgery. That emergency was compounded by a severe adverse reaction to his heart medication that brought him close to death, alongside separate hospitalizations for severely torn gluteal muscles from gardening, subsequent agonizing sciatica, and cataract eye surgery.
May has credited his wife, actress and singer Anita Dobson, with saving his life during his recovery, stating he lives a “ridiculously careful” life now. Dobson herself recently commented publicly that due to the natural realities of aging and health, large-scale, grueling global tours are likely a thing of the past for Queen.
Taking It Day by Day
Despite the caution, neither Taylor nor May are ready to write the final chapter of Queen just yet. When previously pushed by Rolling Stone on whether the group would explicitly outline a “final farewell tour,” Taylor adamantly dismissed the cliché.
“I don’t think we’re done,” Taylor asserted. “And I don’t think we’re going to say a final farewell tour. Because it never is, is it?” When asked if Queen would eventually be resting forever, Taylor simply smiled and added, “At one point we will be.”
For now, the machinery rests, but the creative pilot light remains lit. May previously teased that the band used their downtime to take stock and spend time with family, but hinted at potential archival surprises ahead: “Never say never about not coming back, the rebuild of Queen Two is coming back, and there are a couple of things you haven’t heard.”
Until the legendary guitarist feels fully ready to step back into the stadium lights, Queen remains an open-ended, beautifully unpredictable book. As May summarized, “I don’t know when Queen will be back on stage—it’s an unknown. We’ll take it day by day.”
