Billy Joel Provides Health Update, Doesn’t Know When He’ll Perform Again

Billy Joel’s desire to get back on stage is strong, but whether a brain condition will let him perform again is the question, the singer-songwriter explained in a recent interview. Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Joel said “I have to take a series of tests before I know” about performing. He also revealed, “I can’t drive right now. I’m not allowed to drive.” In 2025, Joel opened up about his diagnosis of Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus (NPH), a brain disorder that causes fluid to accumulate in the brain’s ventricles, leading to issues with hearing, vision, and balance after canceling a series of shows. A return to the stage doesn’t seem likely anytime soon as neurologists have cautioned him against performing. “What the neurologist told me, every time you do a show, it’s like you’re getting a concussion,” Joel told The Hollywood Reporter. Joel elaborated on how NPH isn’t conducive to playing live. “The volume. Rock ‘n’ roll is loud, man,” he said in the interview. “Rock ‘n’ roll made me deaf already. So it’s the lighting, the sound, the stress of the show, the audience, the energy of the performance. There’s a lot going on when you’re onstage. And they said, ‘Well, you really s...