EXCLUSIVE: Decrepit Drummer Phil Collins 'Has Lost Will to Live' And 'Could be Dead Within SIX MONTHS'
Phil Collins is said to be 'losing the will to live' as he battles crippling health conditions.
March 13 2025, Published 6:30 a.m. ET
Decrepit drummer Phil Collins lives in agonizing pain and can no longer make music and friends say the crippled Genesis legend is going downhill quickly and fear he could be dead in six months, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
"I just feel like I've used up my air miles," the morose musician has admitted.
The Easy Lover singer, 74, has had far from an easy time of it was previously reported on his longtime battles with chronic pain and deteriorating health, and sources now say he has been in frantic free fall since the group performed their final concert in March 2022, when the frail fellow sat in a chair onstage while his son Nic, 23, took Phil's place behind the drum kit.
"The last tour was Phil's way of saying goodbye to his fans," our insider said. "He hasn't been able to play the drums and can't hold the drumsticks without horrendous pain. The thing he loved the most has thrashed his hands and feet."
Peter Gabriel was among those who witnessed Phil Collins's final Genesis show, calling it a bittersweet farewell for the drummer.
Our source added: "He's a wreck, physical and mentally, and he's essentially falling apart. Nothing can be done to reverse this, and he's accepted his fate."
The Sussudio singer has suffered debilitating back problems and nerve damage from his years pounding the drums.
He underwent a spinal operation in 2007 for a dislocated vertebra in his neck.
In 2015, he had another major neck surgery and complications from both operations have rendered him "basically crip- pled," according to an insider.
"The thing is, I've been sick, I mean very sick," Collins has admitted.
Years of drumming has left Collins with severe nerve damage, crippling pain and now rapidly declining health.
Former Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel, who left the band in 1975, viewed their final performance from the audience, noted the aging rocker is a shell of his former self.
"Phil wasn't in as great a shape as he used to be, but they did a great job," Gabriel said. "I wanted to be there at the end."
Collins has battled a host of other health problems as well, including type 2 diabetes, hearing loss and tinnitus, a head injury in 2017– and a drop foot, making him drag one of his feet behind him.
And his past battle with alcohol resulted in the musician suffering acute pancreatitis in 2012.
Collins' health is worsening amid nerve damage, diabetes – and a bitter feud with his ex-wife Orianne Cevey.
Never Miss an
Daily updates from the heart of Hollywood, right to your inbox
By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you’re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
Dr. Gabe Mirkin, who has not treated Collins, said Collins' "aging, diabetes, alcohol abuse, head trauma from falling and failed neck surgeries" could be major causes of the extensive nerve damage he appears to have.
Adding to his physical woes, Collins was recently dragged through the muck by two-timing ex-wife Orianne Cevey, who humiliated him by airing his dirty laundry and trying to soak him for tens of millions.
As previously reported, she called the pop star a foul-smelling, impotent addict.
"Phil doesn't have the will to go on anymore," our insider said – before bleakly warning: "People fear the end is near, maybe in as little as half a year."
