Rick Springfield, the 75-year-old singer known for “Jessie’s Girl,” recently discovered he has lasting brain damage from a fall during a 2000 on-stage performance in Las Vegas. In an interview with People magazine, Springfield shared that a recent MRI scan revealed the damage, which he incurred after falling 25 feet and hitting his head multiple times. “I thought I had just broken my wrist,” Springfield said, “but the scan showed some brain damage from the fall, so I’m working on trying to repair that.”
Springfield noted that, unlike most people who avoid discovering their health issues, he prefers to stay informed about his health. His attitude stems from a personal experience when his father died from an undiagnosed ulcer. “It could have been fixed if he had gotten it checked out,” Springfield said, describing the event as a “giant message” for him. “If you want to live long, you have to be prepared for some bad news now and then.”
Despite his age, Springfield maintains a youthful mindset, attributing it to daily exercise, a mostly pescatarian diet, and reducing his alcohol intake, which has also helped him manage depression. He dismisses the notion that “wisdom comes with age,” stating instead that “wisdom comes with digging and looking at yourself.”
Springfield released “Big Hits: Rick Springfield’s Greatest Hits, Volume 2” in December, featuring the Foo Fighters collaboration “The Man That Never Was,” among other tracks. He is also set to join the I Want My 80s Tour this summer, performing alongside fellow 1980s stars such as John Waite, Wang Chung, Paul Young, and John Cafferty.