Roberta Flack Is Unable To Sing After Being Diagnosed With ALS
Grammy-winning musician Roberta Flack is unable to sing after being diagnosed with ALS, a form of motor neuron disease. According to what her manager said on Monday, the performer known for Killing Me Softly with His Song is also having difficulty speaking.
Author:Rhyley CarneyReviewer:Paula M. GrahamNov 16, 202289 Shares1.2K Views
Grammy-winning musician Roberta Flack is unable to singafter being diagnosed with ALS a form of motor neuron disease.
According to what her manager said on Monday, the performer known for Killing Me Softly with His Song is also having difficulty speaking.
The Report
Flack, who is 85 years old, has been awarded four Grammys out of a total of 14 nominations she has received.
The following week, New York City will play host to the world premiere of a documentary that is going to be about her life. Additionally, she plans to publish a book geared toward children in the month of January.
In addition to "Killing Me Softly," which was later covered by the Fugees, Roberta Flack is well-known for songs such as "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Feel Like Makin' Love," both of which propelled her to fame after they were featured in Clint Eastwood's "Play Misty for Me."
According to a statement released by her management, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, has made it difficult for her to speak and sing.
“„But it will take a lot more than ALS to silence this icon, she plans to stay active in her musical and creative pursuits.- Flack's management
There is currently no known treatment for ALS, which is caused by the death of nerves that are responsible for transmitting signals from the brain to the muscles of people. Their mobility, their ability to communicate, and even their breathing are all affected.
The album Killing Me Softly With His Song, which was released by Roberta Flack in 1973, will be celebrating its 50th anniversary the following year, which will fall on 2023. The book and the movie will both be made available to the public at the same time.
After having a stroke in 2016, the singer gave an interview to the Associated Press in which she expressed her hope that her songs would be regarded as "classics" rather than merely "old hits" in the future.
“„I could sing any number of songs that I've recorded through the years, easily, I could sing them, but I'm going to pick those songs that move me, Now that's hard to do. To be moved, to be moved constantly by your own songs.- Roberta Flack
Flack's Career
Flack returned to Washington, D.C., and taught at Banneker, Browne, and Rabaut Junior High Schools before becoming a professional singer-songwriter. She also gave private piano lessons from her home on Euclid Street, NW.
During this time, her music career began to take shape in Washington, D.C. area nightclubs on evenings and weekends. She played the piano for opera singers at the Tivoli Club.
During intermissions, she would sing blues, folk, and pop standards while accompanying herself on the piano in a back room. Later, she performed at the 1520 Club several nights a week, again providing her own piano accompaniment.
Her voice teacher, Frederick "Wilkie" Wilkerson, told her around this time that he saw a brighter future for her in pop music than in the classics. She adapted her repertoire as a result, and her reputation grew.
In 1968, Flack began singing professionally after being hired to perform on a regular basis at Mr. Henry's Restaurant on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
Mr. Henry's had a friendly atmosphere, and the club became a showcase for the young music teacher. Locals were captivated by her voice, and word quickly spread.
A-list entertainers in town would come in late at night to hear her sing (frequent visitors included Woody Allen, Bill Cosby, Ramsey Lewis and others).
Flack's name was inscribed on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1999. That same year, she went on a concert tour in South Africa, where President Nelson Mandela attended the final performance.
She performed a duet of "Where Is The Love?" with Maxwell at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards in 2010.
Flack released Let It Be Roberta in February 2012, an album of Beatles covers that included "Hey Jude" and "Let It Be."
It was her first release in more than eight years. Flack knew John Lennon and Yoko Ono because they both moved into The Dakota apartment building in New York City in 1975, and their apartments were across the hall from each other.
Flack has stated that she has been approached about doing a second album of Beatles covers. In 2013, it was reported that she was working on an interpretive album of classic Beatles songs.
At the age of 80, Flack released Running, the closing credits song for the 2018 feature documentary 3100: Run and Become, with music and lyrics by Michael A. Levine.
Final Words
ALS, which impairs a patient's ability to move, speak, and even breathe, has no known cure. According to the Muscular Dystrophy Association, people with the disease die within three to five years of their diagnosis. Some patients, though, can live for decades.
Rhyley Carney
Author
Paula M. Graham
Reviewer
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