Aerosmith respond to band's own drummer Joey Kramer suing them over Grammys snub

22 January 2020, 11:57

Aerosmith have spoken out after being sent a lawsuit by their own drummer Joey Kramer, who has accused the band of stopping him from performing at the Grammys this weekend.

69-year-old Kramer filed a lawsuit against the 'I Don't Want to Miss a Thing' band – consisting of Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton and Brad Whitford – claiming they "freezed" him out of the band after he suffered a "temporary disability".

Kramer suffered minor injuries in spring 2019, but says he was ready to return for the band’s Las Vegas shows later in the year.

However, Kramer has alleged that the band then introduced a new policy where he would have to audition to prove he was "able to play at an appropriate level".

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According to TMZ, Kramer says the stress had caused "significant repercussions" to his health.

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Aerosmith will be honoured with the MusiCares’ Person of the Year Award on Friday (January 24) ahead of the Grammys this Sunday.

Speaking about the lawsuit, Aerosmith said in a statement: "We would be doing a disservice to Joey, to ourselves and to our fans to have him play without adequate time to prepare and rehearse.

"Compounding this, he chose to file a lawsuit on the Friday night of the holiday weekend preceding the Grammys with total disregard for what is our limited window to prepare to perform these important events."

Kramer has since said in his own statement: "Being prohibited from playing with a band that I have given 50 years of my life to supporting, is beyond devastating."

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He added that "this is not about money" and that he is being "deprived of the opportunity to be recognised along with [his] peers". He continued: "I hope our fans can understand that all I’m trying to do is get back to playing with the band that they love – and that’s Aerosmith with all five original members.

"The greatest magic and success of Aerosmith happens when all the band’s founding members are together in the house. To be removed from my rightful place on stage to celebrate our success – a success that acknowledges my own life’s work, is just plain wrong."