Following the recent cancellation of Twisted Sister‘s highly anticipated 50th-anniversary tour, frontman Dee Snider is setting the record straight about his health. After rumors began circulating that the iconic rock singer was on his deathbed, Snider took to the internet to assure fans that he is very much alive.
The speculation started after the band officially scrapped their 2026 reunion shows on February 5, citing Snider‘s physical ailments as the cause.
To announce the end of the tour, the band released a joint statement explaining the difficult decision. They wrote:
“With regrets, Twisted Sister cancels 50th anniversary celebration performance.
“Due to the sudden and unexpected resignation of Twisted Sister‘s lead singer Dee Snider brought on by a series of health challenges, the band has been forced to cancel all shows scheduled, beginning April 25th in Sao Paulo Brazil and continuing through the summer.
“The future of Twisted Sister will be determined in the next several weeks.
“Stay tuned for updates,
“Jay Jay French/Eddie Ojeda
French Management Enterprises”.
On Saturday, February 14, Snider posted a video to the official Facebook page for his radio show, “House of Hair,” to address the rampant speculation regarding his condition.
“Hey, everybody. It’s me, Dee Snider, and I’m not dying. No, not never — I mean, we’re all dying, but not immediately,” he said.
While he acknowledged that his physical limitations are real, he made it clear that they are not fatal.
“My announcement about canceling the tour for health reasons, problems with my heart, arthritis, things like that, the rumors have run wild that I am on my deathbed,” Dee continued. “I am not. I just can’t do those things that I did in my twenties, thirties, forties, fifties and even sixties. All right? Otherwise, I’m alive and well. I’m enjoying life. I’m here for the ‘House Of Hair’. I’m directing a movie. I’ll be writing things. You won’t see me on the stage kicking ass like I used to because that will mess me up.”
For Snider, toning down his legendary, high-energy stage presence was simply not an option.
“[Someone] just told me, ‘Hey, man, could you just go out on stage and lay back?’ No, I can’t do that,” Dee explained. “That’s not who I am. Look, I can barely do that on the ‘House Of Hair’. So, I had to pull out of Twisted Sister. I had to cancel a tour. My apologies for that. And thank you for all the love and care and worry and all that stuff. It was crazy. I mean, the amount of people, the outpouring was beautiful. Thank you very much for cheering me on.”
He emphasized that he wants fans to remember the band at their absolute peak, rather than watching a compromised version of the show.
“I’m okay. I just can’t do that anymore,” Dee added. “And you know what? Truth of the matter is, I don’t want you to see me up there being less than you expect me to be. If you got memories of a great show that I did, that’s what I wanna leave you with, not me standing up there like Willie Nelson. Nothing wrong with Willie — 95 years old in a wheelchair — but you know what I’m saying. I went out rocking. I’m still rocking here. I ain’t stopping. I got a lot of life to live. My dad’s 95 and still kicking, so I’m expecting to be around for a long time, which means the ‘House Of Hair’ will go on forever.”
He signed off with a reassuring message: “All right. Don’t worry about old Dee. Thank you.”
On February 7, Jay Jay posted a video message online marking the 50th anniversary of Dee joining Twisted Sister.
He said: ”Today is the actual 50th anniversary of the day that Dee auditioned in the band. 1976. Here’s the diary entry. ‘Danny Snider‘ — he wasn’t Dee yet — ‘auditions for Twisted Sister‘, February 7th, 1976.”
“For the last 50 years, me and Eddie have stood side by side with Dee, not with hundreds of shows, but with thousands of shows.”
“You know the cliché in sports, when a great sportsman retires, they say he left it on the field,” Jay Jay continued. “Well, I can tell you when it comes to Dee, he left it on the stage. He gave everything his all, and his body is now telling him, ‘I can’t give you anymore.’ And when someone tells you that, you have to accept it and you have to move on. So please understand this was a tough decision, but we had no other choice but to cancel these dates.”
“As far as the future of Twisted Sister is concerned, Eddie Ojeda and I will have conversations in the next couple of weeks to discuss what, if any, options exist for us to continue.”
“Until then, just know that the SMFs around the world are the thing that kept us alive and kept us going, and we love you guys and we will do everything we can to always live up to your expectations as fans, ’cause nobody understands fandom more than us. We appreciate everything that you’ve ever done for us and hopefully we’ll see you again in the future. Thank you.”
In a separate statement issued on February 5, the 70-year-old Dee Snider disclosed that he had been diagnosed with degenerative arthritis and had already undergone multiple surgeries related to the condition “just to keep going, able to only perform a few songs at a time in pain.”
“A lifetime of legendarily aggressive performing has taken its toll on Dee Snider‘s body and soul,” the statement said. “Adding insult to injury, Dee has recently found out the level of intensity he has dedicated to his life’s work has taken its toll on his heart as well. He can no longer push the boundaries of rock ‘n’ roll fury like he has done for decades.”
Snider added that he doesn’t “know of any other way to rock”.
“The idea of slowing down is unacceptable to me. I’d rather walk away than be a shadow of my former self,” Dee said.
“In the immortal words of Dirty Harry, ‘A man’s got to know his limitations.’ Sadly, Dee Snider now knows his,” the statement concluded.
