Foreigner has undergone many lineup changes since it formed in 1976. The only person to remain a part of the band is Mick Jones. This makes sense, as the group would not exist without Jones being stuck in New York City in the mid-1970s when his former band broke up. That kind of schadenfreude was good for future fans.
The band's first vocalist was Lou Gramm. He piped the words on the band's most successful records, but he eventually left to begin a full solo career. Neither he nor Foreigner has been as successful commercially, but that does not mean the music they made was not good. The music world had moved on.
Since 2005, Foreigner has mainly featured Kelly Hansen on vocals. Gramm appears to have had no real issues with Hansen, but Gramm did feel as if Jones tried to make Hansen sound too much like him. Of course, fans might not mind. Gramm with Foreigner was music magic, enough to get the band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Lou Gramm to rejoin Foreigner for run of Latin America shows
However, Hansen is now having some issues that mean he cannot go outside the United States to perform with the band. He will not be able to perform during the group's run of Latin America dates, and he won't be with Foreigner when the band tours Canada in October and November. (There must be an interesting story there, or maybe there are just passport issues.)
Since Hansen can't make those shows, Foreigner fans in Latin America, at least, are going to get a bit lucky. According to Blabbermouth, Gramm will replace Hansen on that run of performances. The shows will run from April 28 in Ciudad De Mexico to May 10 in São Paulo, Brazil.
If you are a big enough fan of the band and also want to take a quick vacation soon, maybe you should think about Latin America during May. There are beaches, mountains, and loads of good food. Oh, and Lou Gramm is back with Foreigner for a bit.
The only confusing bit is that, according to what Hansen told Blabbermouth, bandmate Luis Maldonado has been recording some of the band's songs in Spanish and will handle vocals while Gramm is a "guest" vocalist. In other words, the concert will be some Maldonado and some Gramm.