Bret Michaels Reveals Offstage World in VH1’s ‘Life As I Know It’
A life-threatening brain hemorrhage hasn’t derailed Bret Michaels’ plans to return to the stage and the small screen to promote his latest solo record, Custom Built, which is due June 8th. The Poison rocker, who is recovering from severe bleeding at the base of his brain stem that struck April 22nd, is scheduled to return to VH1 — the network responsible for introducing him to a new generation of fans via his Rock of Love reality-dating shows — with a new series that premieres May 31st. Though he made his name on VH1 by putting himself in salacious situations, Bret Michaels: Life as I Know It will take a more serious look at his offstage life.
Look back at Bret Michaels’ craziest days with Poison in photos.
The new docu-series, which was in production prior to Michaels’ health woes, will give viewers an intimate look at the Poison singer’s home life, taking fans inside his Arizona compound, where he lives with his two daughters, Raine and Jorja, and their mother, Kristi Gibson. Life As I Know It will depict Michaels’ struggles to balance his career as a rocker, reality TV star and family man, VH1 revealed on their blog.
“Bret is family to us and has always been a huge hit on the network, headlining several series and specials that have garnered record-breaking ratings and made a strong connection with our audience,” VH1’s Executive Vice President of Original Programming and Production Jeff Olde said. “We have temporarily halted production on the series with Bret’s health as our primary concern. Production will resume when it is cleared by his doctors. If anyone can fight off illness and get back on his feet, it’s Bret.”
As Rolling Stone reported earlier this month, Michaels suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage that left him hospitalized for nearly two weeks. Life As I Know It will premiere just three days after he’s scheduled to make his return to the stage on May 28th to promote Custom Built, which includes his duet with Miley Cyrus “Nothing to Lose” and a cover of Sublime’s “What I Got.” On tomorrow’s episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show, Michaels will admit that he wore his trademark bandanna throughout his hospital stay. ‘If I’m going out, I want to go out rockin’,’ ” Michaels told Oprah.