Bad Brains’ H.R. battling debilitating headaches: “I have sharp, stabbing pains every couple of minutes”

Bad Brains frontman Paul “H.R.” Hudson has revealed that he’s been dealing with debilitating headaches over the past few years.

“I have sharp, stabbing pains every couple of minutes in my brain for a couple of hours,” H.R. tells Rolling Stone. “Then it goes away — and then it comes back.”

The headaches, a rare type known as Short-lasting Unilateral Neuralgiform with Conjunctival injection and Tearing (SUNCT), began in 2014. He underwent brain surgery in 2017, which alleviated the pain for about a year before the headaches started up again. The procedure also put H.R. in debt.

H.R. hoped to return to the road in 2023, but his condition forced him to cancel his planned tour dates.

“I was a little lethargic and despondent after canceling the tour,” he says. “But I just kept my head up and rose above it.”

H.R. was able to record a new song with 311‘s Nick Hexum called “Everything You Do,” which was released in June. Meanwhile, H.R.’s wife, Lori Carns, has set up a GoFundMe to help pay for medical bills and other expenses.

“My plan is to take it easy now and take a break,” H.R. says. “I need to get together with another surgeon and see what I can do, do some investigating so we can work it out.”

“I don’t want anyone to give up on me,” he continues. “I want people to remember I was a good man, who was a fighter and remained humble.”