The Canadian singer is back fronting INXS on the road, despite claiming in 2009 that the band had fired him -- a event he now calls a misunderstanding.
"There was a lot of confusion at the time," says the 37-year-old singer, who replaced deceased singer Michael Hutchence after winning the Rock Star reality TV show in 2005. "We had just got off tour and we took a break. And in that break, things got misconstrued. We were not able to communicate with each other -- we live 12,000 kilometres apart."
Fortune, who was living in his car before signing up for Rock Star, ended up broke and homeless again. But last year, he and the band met and ironed out the situation. They performed together at the Vancouver Olympics, then in Australia, and have begun working on new material, Fortune says.
"We got together after the show in Melbourne and just started jamming. And all the sparks went off -- it was like fireworks and bells and whistles. We all went, 'Awesome. Let's keep doing this.' The possibilities are endless. It's really exciting. I'm just honoured to be fronting the band again."
Along with INXS, Fortune says he's been writing tunes with Iron Maiden guitarist Adrian Smith, and one of his songs has been picked up by producer Jerry Bruckheimer for a movie.
