Stevie Wonder is taking a step back from music as he focuses on his health and prepares to undergo a medical procedure this fall.
The “For Once in My Life” crooner took the stage on Saturday, July 6, in London and opened up to the audience about his upcoming kidney transplant, and also assured the crowd that he will be OK.
“I’m all good, I’m all good, I’m all good. I have a donor, it’s all good,” Wonder, 69, said after saying the surgery will take place in September. “I want you to know I came here to give you my love and to thank you for your love. You ain’t gotta hear no rumors about nothing, I told you what’s up. I’m good. All right?”
Wonder’s announcement comes just days after the Detroit Free Press reported that the legendary singer “is battling a serious but manageable health issue.” Jazz musician Joan Belgrave told the outlet that Wonder has “some health challenges, but he doesn’t want a big PR thing out of” it.
“He knows what he has to do to get himself together, and he’s doing it. He’s got a team around him — that’s what he needs. He’s got people around him who love him,” the “Hey Love” songstress continued. “He’s in great spirits. You would never know anything is going on. That’s how he wants it, and that’s how he wants to keep it. He’s making music and doing what he does, and that’s what he wants to focus on.”
Veteran Motown songwriter and producer Mickey Stevenson also spoke to the Detroit Free Press about his longtime pal, calling Wonder’s health struggle “a little problem.”
While Wonder plans to take a step back after his surgery in order to recover, the Michigan native will continue to play his upcoming shows, including multiple concerts in Ireland and the United States later this month.
