Following a week of public friction regarding cancelled tour dates and financial disputes, Poison drummer Rikki Rockett has confirmed that he is back in direct contact with frontman Bret Michaels and that the band is actively targeting a reunion trek for 2027.
The clarification comes days after Rockett told the press that a proposed 40th-anniversary tour for 2026 had collapsed due to Michaels allegedly demanding a lopsided pay structure—claims the singer subsequently denied. Speaking on the January 29 edition of SiriusXM‘s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk,” Rockett sought to calm the waters, revealing that he and Michaels have already cleared the air via text.
“You know what?! Bret and I had texted this morning,” Rockett told host Eddie Trunk (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). “And by the way, none of this just came from me. It’s just I happened to be doing the interview because [I was being inducted into] the Metal Hall Of Fame. So I was doing the interview with New York Post, among many other outlets, but they’re the ones that had asked me about the tour. And so the reason I said what I said is because… All the information I had was the truth, from my standpoint.”
Rockett explained that his decision to discuss the financial deadlock publicly was motivated by a desire to prevent darker rumors regarding the band’s health and sobriety from taking root.
“And a lot of people, they start assuming things. I was seeing stuff on social media: ‘Oh, Rikki has cancer again.’ Or ‘C.C.‘s [DeVille, Poison guitarist] off the wagon again’ or all these different things. ‘Those guys don’t really wanna work’ and ‘Bret wants to work’. And none of those things are true. We do wanna work, all of us do wanna work. C.C.‘s sober. I don’t have cancer. None of those things are true.”
Addressing Michaels‘ recent counter-statement—in which the singer insisted that formal negotiations never actually took place—Rockett conceded that the dispute occurred during the preliminary stages of planning.
“But Bret‘s right,” Rockett admitted. “We didn’t sit down at a negotiating table, really. It never did get that far. It got kiboshed at the very beginning. But I just wanted to put a sensible reason to it so that everybody understands that it wasn’t Bobby [Dall, Poison bassist], C.C. or me, any of those rumors you heard, that’s not why we weren’t touring. And so I have to answer it with something.”
However, regarding the specific “six-to-one” financial figure he previously cited, Rockett maintained that the numbers he saw led to that conclusion.
“I was told what Bret wanted, and when you did the math, that’s how the math worked out. And I’m not trying to quarrel with Bret. And I do think that we’re gonna do something in ’27.”
With the 2026 window now closed, the band is pivoting toward a “40-plus” anniversary celebration the following year. Rockett emphasized that all four original members are aligned on this goal.
“That’s one of the things, main things, that Bret and I talked about. I think what we want is we wanna celebrate — it’ll be 41 years, right? — but we wanna celebrate 40-plus years with the four of us with fans. That’s what we wanna do. And it sounds like a cheesy slogan or something, but honestly, we do. So it’s gonna happen for sure at some point. It’s not gonna happen in ’26 — we just can’t make it happen that fast — but it is gonna happen.”
He continued, stressing that the media drama should now be considered resolved.
“And there’s no more of a headline to stick out there — all the low-hanging-fruit media out there that tries to find a headline — there’s nothing there, really. I said what I said, Bret said what he said, but today we’re talking about doing something in ’27, and I know Bobby wants to do it, I talk to C.C. all the time. We’re all on board. So I think it’s gonna happen. God forbid — we’re all in good health and all that stuff, so I look forward to it.”
When asked to characterize his recent text exchange with the singer, Rockett described it as constructive and lighthearted.
“It was absolutely positive. We had a good laugh. Of course we talked a little bit. I told him why that information went out, and I just told you. But there’s no second shoe to drop. Honestly, we wanna do the tour. It’s gonna be delayed now till ’27, but I think it’s gonna happen in ’27, which is perfect Poison. A 41st anniversary is, like, fricking amazing, right? [Laughs]”
