Musician Roberta Flack is no longer able to sing
after being diagnosed with ALS, a representative says.
Flack’s manager Suzanne Koga said the disease
“has made it impossible to sing and not easy to speak" but will not “silence this icon.”
ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease in the US
and more broadly under the umbrella term motor neurone disease (MND) in the UK
is a progressive neurodegenerative disease.
MND affects the nerves in the brain and spinal cord
that tell the muscles what to do,
and can cause sufferers to lose the ability to speak, eat, move, and breathe over time.
her talent won her a full ride to Howard University at just 15.