Bad Brains’ H.R. Discusses Debilitating Condition: ‘Don’t Give Up On Me’

Paul Hudson, aka H.R. (Human Rights), the vocalist for hardcore punk pioneers Bad Brains, has been facing the rare neurological disorder, SUNCT syndrome, since 2016.

Short-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache with conjunctival injection and tearing, or SUNCT, involves periodic excruciating headaches that have become debilitating for H.R.

The Music reported on H.R.’s condition in February 2017 as he underwent surgery for his increasingly diminished quality of life.

In March 2016, H.R.’s wife and carer, Lori Hudson, set up a GoFundMe Campaign to help alleviate the financial strains that resulted from the severe and chronic headaches. In a new interview with Rolling Stone, H.R. has told the publication that he hopes family, friends and fans stay by his side. “I don’t want anyone to give up on me,” he said.

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

The 2017 surgery left H.R. in debt, and due to the incurable nature of SUNCT, he had no choice but to cancel a Bad Brains 2023 US tour, which only issued further financial strain on the punk legend.

However, H.R. isn’t a man without hope, telling Rolling Stone about his plans: “My plan is to take it easy now and take a break.

“I need to get together with another surgeon and see what I can do, do some investigating so we can work it out.”

In the initial GoFundMe post, Hudson said the rare condition her husband faces – which has been nicknamed “Suicide Syndrome” – had got progressively worse to the point where he now lives in “almost constant pain”.

“The intensity of the nighttime headaches is so great that he yells, cries out, groans, and sobs — repeatedly, every few minutes, for most of the night,” Hudson wrote.

“He can't work. He has no quality of life. If you call him and ask how he is, he will say, 'Everything's okay,' because that's just how he is. But everything is not okay.

“He has lost weight, with visible muscle wasting.”

Hudson has since started another GoFundMe Support Fund for H.R.’s Headache Hardship – you can donate here. There’s also an option to donate to H.R. via PayPal.

You can keep up with H.R.’s health updates and signed gloss prints on Instagram.