Bret
Michaels is, if nothing else, a true survivor. He has survived a life
long battle as an insulin dependent diabetic, a well publicized near fatal car
crash in 1994 and the countless musical trends and fads of the last two
decades.
“As
soon as I ever start to just go through the motions I’ll quit,” confessed the
44 year old singer, songwriter, producer, director and actor in a recent
interview. But there’s little chance he’ll even slow down let alone quit
anytime soon. In fact, after more than 20 years in the business this
award winning, multi platinum superstar’s career continues to move at warp
speed.
As
front man for the legendary rock
band Poison, Michaels has sold 25 million records and scored an amazing 15
chartbusting Top 40 singles including “Talk Dirty to Me,” “Something to Believe
In,” “Nothing But a Good Time” and the timeless #1 smash “Every Rose Has its
Thorn.” And in the new millennium Poison’s music has been featured in
such big screen flicks as “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” “Grandma’s
Boy” and “Deuce Bigelow-European Gigolo.” They continue to be one of the industry’s
top grossing concert attractions and their 2006 “20 Years of Rock” CD was a
bona fide Top 20 gold smash. Their current single, a remake of the 1974 Grand Funk Railroad classic “We’re an American Band” was produced by Don Was (The Rolling
Stones, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt).
Michaels
has also produced and written material for other artists including Stevie
Nicks. He wrote and produced the song “Love’s a Hard Game to Play” which appeared on Nicks’ platinum
album “Timespace: The Best Of Stevie
Nicks.” More recently Michaels
could be heard providing background vocals along with Phil Vassar on the Kenny
Chesney/Uncle Kracker duet single “Last Night Again.”
In
the mid-90s Michaels formed a film
production company with actor Charlie Sheen. The partnership ultimately
led to Michaels writing, directing and starring in several films including “A
Letter From Death Row” which he executive co-produced
with Sheen.
As
an actor, Michaels has made regular appearances on such hit television shows as
“Yes Dear,” “Martial Law,” and “The Chris
Isaak Show.” And he has also co-hosted
“Access Hollywood” and been a judge on the wildly popular “Nashville Star”
program.
Setting
his musical sights beyond Poison, Michaels released his debut
solo album “Songs of Life” in 2003 followed by the rootsy, Americana
flavored sophomore record “Freedom of Sound” in 2005.
“I
would play music whether I made it or not,” Michaels told a journalist in 2002
and it’s that commitment to his art that continues to keep him at the forefront of the entertainment industry.