Roberta Flack reveals she can no longer sing as she battles ALS
15 November 2022, 12:15
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The 85-year-old finds it "impossible to sing" but will not be kept silent as she battles ALS.
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Roberta Flack has officially hung up her microphone as she revealed that she has been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Her manager Suzanne Koga said that Flack now found it "impossible to sing and not easy to speak".
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However, Koga added: "It will take a lot more than ALS to silence this icon.
"Miss Flack plans to stay active in her musical and creative pursuits
"Her fortitude and joyful embrace of music that lifted her from modest circumstances to the international spotlight remain vibrant and inspired."
After being forced to abandon a performance at the Apollo Theatre in 2018, Flack had revealed in 2018 that she had suffered a stroke a few years earlier.
Flack is perhaps best known for her massive singles 'The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face' and 'Killing Me Softly with His Song'.
As well as topping the Billboard Hot 100, both singles won the Grammy for Record of the Year, giving Flack the award for consecutive years.
Her other hits include 'Feel Like Makin' Love' and the Donny Hathaway duets 'Where Is the Love' and 'The Closer I Get to You'.
In 2020, Flack was given a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, having been given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame a year earlier.
Her last studio album was 2018's Running.
