Huey Lewis Talks About His Two Career Mistakes In The ’80s

Huey Lewis disclosed some of the biggest mistakes he made in his career in the ’80s: Rejecting a juicy sponsorship deal and refusing to record a song Bob Dylan sent him.

The singer-songwriter recalled points in his career at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, being interviewed by Jimmy Kimmel and reported by Billboard. Lewis said that after Michael Jackson signed onto a $50 million deal with beverage giant Pepsi, its rival company tried to get to him. “Coca-Cola asked to have a meeting [so] we flew to Atlanta. They offered us millions of dollars [to use] ‘The Heart of Rock & Roll’ in a commercial. I said no. Stupid,” Lewis shared.

He also shared that he met Bob Dylan during the recording of the charity single “We Are The World” back in ’85. Lewis sang a line in the song intended for Prince, who didn’t show up. Later on, Dylan sent him a song and suggested he use it, but Lewis declined. “I should have cut it. I don’t know what I was thinking,” Lewis exclaimed.

Lewis is currently afflicted with a hearing impairment which makes future performances impossible to do. He also shared how his father was supportive of his career in music but reminded him to take care. “He told me to keep playing the harmonica. He said, ‘They can’t take that away from you. This Huey Lewis and the News shit could be here today, gone tomorrow,” he recalled.