Eddie Vedder Addresses ‘Near-Death Experience’ That Led to Pearl Jam Cancellations

Eddie Vedder was very forthcoming about the recent health issues he and the members of Pearl Jam have been dealing with, which resulted in canceled shows.

During Pearl Jam's July 6 show in Barcelona, Vedder addressed the crowd about the illness he and "a few of us" in the band dealt with. As captured via fan-shot video, Vedder said, "Can I just say that the last week, it almost felt like a near-death experience. It was very uncomfortable, and it got frightening. It felt like chest bronchitis. It felt like maybe you couldn’t breathe, and maybe you wouldn’t make it through the night, and maybe you’d have to go to the hospital."

He added, "You just realize how precious this life is. How lucky we are to have been living on a planet where we can go around and play to incredible people like the people in this room here tonight. So, it was a poignant experience. I won’t be forgetting it anytime soon. And we won’t be forgetting tonight anytime soon."

This show moment follows Pearl Jam canceling three previous dates on their European tour. The first cancelation was the band's June 29 stop in London. The next show cancelations were July 2 and 3 in Berlin.

As for what's next for Pearl Jam, their next stop on their European tour is July 11 in Madrid, Spain. Their remaining show dates for 2024 are below.

July 11 - Madrid, Spain - Iberdrola Music (Mad Cool Festival)
July 13 - Lisbon, Portugal - Passeio Marítimo de Algés (NOS Alive Festival)
August 22 - Missoula, MT - Washington - Grizzly Stadium
August 26 - Indianapolis, IN - Ruoff Music Center
August 29 - Chicago, IL - Wrigley Field
August 31 - Chicago, IL - Wrigley Field
September 3 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
September 4 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
September 7 - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center
September 9 - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center
September 12 - Baltimore, MD - CFG Bank Arena
September 15 - Boston, MA - Fenway Park
September 17 - Boston, MA - Fenway Park
September 27 - Dana Point, CA - Ohana Festival
September 29 - Dana Point, CA - Ohana Festival
November 8 - Auckland, New Zealand - Go Media Stadium Mt Smart
November 10 - Auckland, New Zealand - Go Media Stadium Mt Smart
November 13 - Gold Coast, Australia - Heritage Bank Stadium
November 16 - Melbourne, Australia - Marvel Stadium
November 18 - Melbourne, Australia - Marvel Stadium
November 21 - Sydney, Australia - ENGIE Stadium
November 23 - Sydney, Australia - ENGIE Stadium

Eddie Vedder hasn't been as prolific with side-projects as his Pearl Jam bandmates: Stone Gossard used to have a band called Brad (R.I.P. Shawn Smith) and currently is a band called Painted Shield; he's also done solo records. Jeff Ament has been part of Three Fish, Tres Mtns. and RNDM, and has put out a bunch of solo songs. Matt Cameron's discography includes a number of projects including Hater, Wellwater Conspiracy, Harrybu McCage and Ten Commandos. Mike McCready, meanwhile, has been a member of Mad Season and the Rockfords.

Vedder, meanwhile, has just three solo albums to his name, so far: but it turns out that he has a pretty impressive discography outside of the band. He's frequently contributed songs to various artist compilations, done one-off singles, and collaborated with other artists. Here are some of our favorite Vedder moments outside of Pearl Jam.