After two months of keeping it a secret, Andrea Bocelli has revealed that he, and his family, tested positive for coronavirus back in March.
The Italian opera singing icon confirmed the diagnosis in a Facebook post on Tuesday, adding that along with his family, he was “fortunate enough to have a swift and full recovery” by the end of that month.
Bocelli, 61, said that he kept the news confidential “out of respect for those for whom contracting the virus has had more serious consequences.”
“I certainly didn’t want to unnecessarily alarm my fans and also wished to protect my family’s privacy (too),” admitted the five-time Grammy Award nominee.
Despite his recent bout with COVID-19, Bocelli added that he was quick to donate some of his blood in an attempt to help find a cure for the life-threatening ailment.
He wrote: “Given the chance to donate blood to help find a cure for (COVID-19), my response was an immediate ‘yes.’ A modest — but fundamental — gesture, through which I am playing my small part.”
On Easter Sunday (April 12), shortly after his recovery, Bocelli broke two of YouTube’s biggest records in the midst of the ongoing pandemic.
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Not only did he put on the biggest classical livestream event in the website’s history, but also its biggest musical livestream of all time.
The Music For Hope concert was held at the Duomo di Milano — the cathedral church of Milan, Italy — and pulled in more than 2.8 million “peak concurrent viewers” across the globe while it was happening, according to Variety.
Bocelli was invited by the city and the esteemed Christian church to spread a message of positivity, love and hope through the power of music during the COVID–19 outbreak.
To find additional information on the Because We Believe singer and to keep up to date on future tour listings, you can visit the official Andrea Bocelli website.
Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:
Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.
To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out.
In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus.
For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.
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