Perry: Aerosmith looking for new singer

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry says the U.S. rock band is looking for a replacement singer because Steven Tyler is being treated for drug addiction.

Tyler announced last month he had entered a rehabilitation facility to deal with his dependency on prescription medications. At the time, Tyler said he was eager to get well and return to working with Aerosmith, his nearly 40-year-old band.

Billboard.com reported it was unclear whether the replacement Perry is seeking for Tyler would be permanent or temporary.

"(The band) are already getting the word out there. The word's been out there for a while," Perry told Canada's QMI Agency, adding the band plans to "start having some auditions, making some phone calls" next month.

"Hopefully, we'll have found a new singer by the summer, and Aerosmith will be able to go back out on the road," Perry said. "It's kind of hard to get a straight answer about what's going on. "(Tyler) has to have leg surgery and foot surgery, and it's basically going to take him out of the picture for about a year, year and a half. So, in the meantime, the rest of the band wants to play. And I want to play with the other guys in Aerosmith. So the four of us are just making our plans. We're gonna find somebody to get in there and fill that spot."

Tyler, who has battled substance abuse problems in the past, reportedly starting abusing prescription medications after he suffered performance-related injuries, including to his foot and leg.