Huey Lewis Reveals He’s Done With Music After Going ‘Basically Deaf’

Huey Lewis recently announced that he is done with music after going “basically deaf.”

During an interview on the Inside of You With Michael Rosenbaum podcast published on July 7, the “Power of Love” singer, 76, shared an unexpected health update.

Previously, Lewis opened up about getting diagnosed with Ménière’s disease in the ’90s and going deaf in one ear. Ménière’s disease is an inner ear disorder that affects balance and hearing, with symptoms including vertigo, tinnitus, hearing loss, and more, per the Cleveland Clinic.

“I lost hearing in my right ear like 35 years ago,” he explained. “I existed, basically, on one ear… And then my left ear bailed. And now, I’m deaf, basically, without the technology involved.”

Lewis then showed the cochlear implant on his left ear and the hearing aid on his right ear. “But I’m basically deaf,” he reiterated. “And what does that mean? Well, it changed my life, right?”

He continued, “At a certain point, you gotta face the music… Eight and a half years, and my life has changed immeasurably. I can’t hear music,” he said. “Music is not part of my life anymore, which is a hard pill to swallow.”

When asked to elaborate on not being able to hear music but understanding a conversation, Lewis, who stopped performing in 2018, offered more insight.

“You sound a little like Mickey Mouse. People sound like they took a hit of helium,” he told host Michael Rosenbaum, about how his cochlear implant processes sound. “So it colors the pitch. It makes pitch impossible to hear. But I can hear conversation.”

In addition to “The Power of Love,” some of Huey Lewis and the News’ biggest hits include “I Want a New Drug,” “The Heart of Rock & Roll,” “Hip to Be Square,” and “Stuck With You.”