Decades-spanning rock star Jon Bon Jovi has broken the recent silence he’s been holding since his daughter’s heroin overdose. During an interview with Fox 11 in Los Angeles on Tuesday, the 50-year-old rocker called the episode a “tragedy,” adding that ”we’ll get through it.”

Bon Jovi also spoke about the rock lifestyle and the issues that come with it, stating, “It’s human. What I do for a living, it seems glitzy and glamorous but if you don’t take it too seriously it’s a great way to make a living. And then life goes on. Things happen.” He adds that he and his family appreciate all the warm wishes and support they’ve received from fans.

Stephanie Rose Bongiovi, 19, is the eldest of the rocker’s four children with his wife of 23 years, Dorothea Hurley. Bongiovi, who goes by her father’s given name, overdosed on heroin in her dorm room at Hamilton College in Kirkland, NY on November 14th. Drug charges against Bongiovi and her friend Ian S. Grant were dismissed due to recently amended state laws that bar prosecuting someone who overdoses, or someone helping an overdose victim, with possessing a small amount of drugs. Bongiovi recovered from the overdose at a local hospital and has since been released.

Bon Jovi has opened up in the past about his own youthful drug experimentation. In 2007 he told Best Life Magazine, “I did the drug thing very young and wised-up very young too, because I was into drugs a little too much.” He credits his wife and four kids for helping him find stability and meaning.

Next up, the rocker is scheduled to perform a benefit concert for the school’s college scholarship and arts program in Times Square on December 5th. He also joined fellow New Jersey rocker Bruce Springsteen in supporting the Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund effort.