Billy Joel experienced an unexpected tumble during his concert on Saturday, February 22, which prompted gasps from the audience.
The 75-year-old music legend was singing his 1980 single It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me at the Mohegan Sun in Montville, Connecticut, when the incident occurred. According to onlookers, Joel was spinning his microphone when he lost his balance and threw it at the audience. He crashed on his back, forcing his bandmates to hurry over and help him get back on his feet.
Joel completed the song and even performed one more before the concert ended. However, fans remarked that he did not appear to be in peak form throughout the concert.
Joel’s tumble comes after he cancelled a Florida show in January for an unspecified “medical procedure.” The performance has now been rescheduled for November 2025.
Billy Joel, born William Martin Joel on May 9, 1949, in the Bronx, New York, is one of music’s most popular songwriters and pianists.
Joel was up in Hicksville, Long Island, and acquired an early interest in music, learning classical piano before moving on to rock and pop.
Joel’s breakthrough came in 1973 with Piano Man, and the title track became his hallmark song. He continued to ascend to prominence with a succession of successful albums, including The Stranger (1977), 52nd Street (1978), and Glass Houses (1980), which produced timeless favorites like Just the Way You Are, My Life, and It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me. His storytelling lyrics and distinctive piano-driven style won him a devoted fan base.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Joel dominated the charts with albums like An Innocent Man (1983) and Storm Front (1989), which had songs like Uptown Girl and We Didn’t Start the Fire. Despite retiring from pop music after River of Dreams (1993), he remained a popular concert performer, selling out stadiums worldwide.
Joel has received numerous Grammy awards, including the Album of the Year for 52nd Street, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999. His residency at Madison Square Garden, which began in 2014, set records for sold-out shows.
