by EFE
Legendary African-American singer Roberta Flack has been diagnosed with Lou Gehrug's disease, which prevents her from continuing to sing, her representative Suzanne Koga said Monday.
The disease "has made it impossible" for the 85-year-old singer of
Killing me softly with his song
to sing and also difficult for her to speak, Koga said in a statement cited by the media.
Also known as
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Lou Gehrig
's is a nervous system disease
that attacks nerve cells (neurons) in the brain and spinal cord.
Roberta Flack won the Grammy for Song of the Year in 1973 for 'Killing me softly with his song,' and also for 'The first time I ever saw your face.' Axelle/Bauer-Griffin / FilmMagic
“But it will take much more than ALS to silence this icon,” the representative said, explaining that Flack “plans to stay active in her musical and creative pursuits” through her eponymous foundation and other avenues.
The announcement of the artist's illness is known before the premiere of
Roberta
, a documentary directed by Antonino D'Ambrosio that will be presented this Thursday at the DOCNYC film festival.
The FDA approves a drug that fights Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Sept.
30, 202200:33
That feature film is expected to hit US television next, on January 24, as part of the
American masters
series on public channel PBS.
Roberta Flack's songs span a wide musical spectrum, from pop to soul and folk to jazz.
He won the Grammy for Song of the Year in 1973
for
Killing me softly with his song
, and also for
The first time I ever saw your face
, which catapulted him to stardom after Clint Eastwood used it as the soundtrack for a scene in love in his 1971 film
Play Misty for Me
.