LOU GRAMM Says He Will Continue Performing With FOREIGNER 'For Another Year Or So'

FOREIGNER kicked off its spring 2025 Latin American tour Monday night (April 28) at Arena Ciudad de México in Mexico City, Mexico. Handling lead vocals for most of the set was FOREIGNER guitarist Luis Maldonado, while original FOREIGNER vocalist Lou Gramm joined in for the last four songs. Asked in a new interview with Brazil’s 92.5 Kiss FM radio station if he will keep performing with FOREIGNER beyond the Latin American tour, Gramm said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “I think we’re gonna continue doing this type of thing for another year or so… [After the Latin American tour] I’m doing Southeast Asia, I’m doing Europe and next year I’m doing the whole of the U.S.”

Gramm also spoke about the fact that Maldonado is singing some of the FOREIGNER classics in Spanish during the Latin American tour. “We just talked about it within the last two weeks,” Lou said. “And we decided that when we play areas of the world where Spanish is the dominant language, Luis, who has a wonderful voice, will sing some of the big hits in Spanish. I think that’s fabulous… He’s worked on [translating all the lyrics into Spanish] and he’s made it work. He’s very excited about doing it.”

Elsewhere during the chat, Gramm commented on FOREIGNER‘s long-overdue 2024 induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Eligible since 2002, FOREIGNER has had a huge number of rock hits, including “Cold As Ice”, “Double Vision”, “Hot Blooded”, “I Want To Know What Love Is”, “Juke Box Hero” and “Urgent”, and has been nominated for three Grammy Awards, with no wins.

“Well, [the Rock Hall induction] means a great deal because I know we were eligible 20 years ago, and we just didn’t get nominated,” Gramm said. “And we would put our heads together — the band with our management — and wonder what we need to do to be a part of this. And it just took a longer time than we thought, but it sure is sweet to be in there now. I only wish that Mick [Jones, FOREIGNER‘s founding guitarist] was in better health, that he could have been there to play with us that night and enjoy the induction too. That’s the tragedy of it, because we should have been in 20 years ago, in which case Mick would’ve been extremely healthy and we would be able to enjoy that honor as a band.”

In March, FOREIGNER singer Kelly Hansen released a statement regarding his absence from the band’s Latin American and Canadian tours. The 63-year-old vocalist, who has fronted the legendary rockers for the past two decades, said that “some residency issues” had forced him to limit appearances outside of the USA this year.

Prior to the Mexico City concert, Gramm most recently joined FOREIGNER‘s current lineup on stage at the end of the band’s March 15 concert at the BayCare Sound in Clearwater, Florida to perform two of the legendary rock group’s classic songs, “I Want To Know What Love Is” and “Hot Blooded”.

Gramm previously said he planned to retire at the end of 2024, but later revealed that he was in talks to make appearances at “select” tour dates with FOREIGNER‘s current lineup in 2025. Bassist Rick Wills and drummer Dennis Elliott are also expected to appear at some shows, including FOREIGNER‘s upcoming Las Vegas residency.

Gramm was the voice on FOREIGNER‘s biggest hits, including “Feels Like The First Time” and “Cold As Ice” from the band’s eponymous debut in 1977, and later songs like “Hot Blooded” and “I Want to Know What Love Is”.

The 74-year-old Gramm left FOREIGNER for good in 2002 and has battled health issues in recent years, including the removal of a non-cancerous tumor. He told the Democrat & Chronicle in 2018 that he was planning to retire, but still reunited with FOREIGNER for several shows that year.

FOREIGNER replaced Gramm with Hansen in 2005. Jones, the only remaining original member of FOREIGNER, suffered from some health issues beginning in 2011, eventually resulting in heart surgery in 2012. In February 2024, Jones revealed on social media that he was battling Parkinson’s disease, which explained his absence from FOREIGNER‘s live shows since 2022.

Image credit: Kenz Vidz