Steven Tyler’s Old Remarks About His Daughter Liv Resurface as Julia Misley’s Abuse Lawsuit Stays Unresolved

Gossip

By Sari Moon

Updated 5 minutes ago, November 3, 2026

Asked by music writer Gavin Edwards whether he’d ever felt inappropriately attracted to his daughter Liv, Steven Tyler replied, “Oh, absolutely.” The exchange appeared in Edwards’s 2006 book Is Tiny Dancer Really Elton’s Little John? and has resurfaced while Julia Misley’s civil abuse lawsuit against the Aerosmith singer remains unresolved.

Edwards’s account includes qualifiers missing from the circulating excerpt: Tyler said “Unless he’s an ugly man” and “on a certain level.” He also said, “Positively, there’s a certain level of narcissism in incest.”

Tyler drew a boundary between attraction and acting on it, saying “the real man knows that’s just a place to never go,” and referred to “Janie’s Got a Gun,” Aerosmith’s song about a daughter sexually abused by her father.

The book was published on August 8, 2006. Edwards later posted the passage on his website, but didn’t date the interview itself. Misley’s lawsuit doesn’t allege misconduct involving Liv, whose mother is Bebe Buell.

Misley, formerly known as Julia Holcomb, filed her complaint on December 27, 2022. She was 16 and Tyler was 25 when they met in November 1973 at an Aerosmith concert in Portland, Oregon; she alleges he subsequently groomed and sexually assaulted her.

She says she subsequently travelled with him and lived in Massachusetts. Tyler denies the allegations and has described the relationship as consensual; his legal defenses have also included guardian immunity.

On April 28, 2026, Judge Patricia A. Young narrowed the case to 1 intentional-infliction-of-emotional-distress claim concerning an alleged encounter in California in 1974. She alleges that at a Los Angeles hotel, Tyler dragged her naked to a public hot tub for sex.

California’s age of consent was 18, and Young wrote that Misley was “legally incapable of consenting.” The ruling allowed that claim to proceed; it didn’t establish that Misley’s allegations had been proved.

Young recused herself on September 15, 2026, taking a scheduled jury trial off the calendar. The lawsuit remains unresolved, with a new trial schedule pending.

Tyler, 78, performed with Aerosmith at the Hollywood Bowl on October 29, 2026, after the band announced its retirement from touring in 2024 because of his vocal injury. Liv, 49, and Alicia Silverstone introduced the band before its 6-song set.

Thanks for reading Thought Catalog. Show us some love on Facebook, and discover more on our website.