22-07-2025
Billy Joel Says He Originally Thought His Brain Disorder Was Caused by ‘Drinking'
Billy Joel previously assumed his heavy alcohol consumption was to blame for the rare brain disorder he is battling.
The legendary singer-songwriter, 76, appeared on the Monday, July 21, episode of Bill Maher's Club Random podcast and discussed his normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) diagnosis.
After Maher, 69, asked Joel what the condition is caused by, the 'Piano Man' answered, 'Nobody knows. They don't know.'
'I thought it must be from drinking,' added the musician, who has previously struggled with alcohol.
'But you don't drink,' Maher quipped, to which Joel responded, 'Not anymore, but I used to like a fish.'
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, 'NPH occurs if the normal flow of CSF throughout the brain and spinal cord is blocked in some way. This may be due to past injury, bleeding, infection, brain tumor, or surgery on the brain, or the cause is often not known. When excess CSF fluid builds up in the ventricles, they enlarge and press against nearby brain tissue. This extra fluid and pressure can lead to brain damage.'
Joel said his condition has not been 'fixed' but is 'still being worked on.'
'I feel fine,' he told Maher. 'My balance sucks. It's like being on a boat.'
Despite the balance issues, the 'Vienna' hitmaker said he feels 'good.'
'They keep referring to what I have as a brain disorder, so it sounds a lot worse than what I'm feeling,' he remarked.
The five-time Grammy winner also spoke to People on Monday, making it clear he doesn't want the public to stress about his health following the release of part one of his two-part HBO documentary, Billy Joel: And So It Goes, on July 18.
'I know a lot of people are worried about me and my health, but I'm okay,' he told the outlet. 'What I have is something very few people know about, including me, no matter how much you try to research it. I'm doing my best to work with it and to recover from it.'
'I just wanted to let people know, don't worry about me being deathly ill or anything,' he added.
In May, Joel revealed his diagnosis via a social media statement letting fans know he would have to cancel multiple concert dates.
'This condition has been exacerbated by recent concert performances, leading to problems with hearing, vision, and balance,' the statement on his Instagram read. 'Under his doctor's instructions, Billy is undergoing specific physical therapy and has been advised to refrain from performing during this recovery period.'
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