Is Joni Mitchell in good health?
That’s the question fans are asking as the iconic songstress is prepared to make an epic comeback into the music scene in 2024.
In a matter of weeks, not only was it announced that Joni would be performing at the Grammys for the firs time ever, but also, the 80-year-old folk singer will be headlining her first Los Angeles show in over 24 years in the fall.
All that said, Joni has had serious health issues in the past to combat. In a way, you can say, she’s looked at life from both sides now.
Joni Mitchell, strumming her guitar outside The Revolution club in London, 18th September 1968. ((Photo by Central Press/Hulton Archive/Getty Images))
Joni Mitchell’s Health: Her Lifelong Battle with Polio
It’s not something you hear too much about these days, but back when Joni was a little girl, she was diagnosed with polio.
For those not in the know, polio is a virus that can cause paralysis. Poor Joni had a serious case of it when she was 9-years-old.
What’s worse, at 51 years old, Joni battled post-polio syndrome. That’s when the symptoms of the condition come back again later in life.
“I have to guard my energy,” Joni said about living with the disease. “Just like the bunnies in those battery commercials. I’m the one that’s about to keel over. I’m not the one that’s going and going.”
Joni Mitchell arrives for the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song ceremony in Washington, DC, March 1, 2023. US singer/songwriter Joni Mitchell is this year’s winner of the Gershwin Prize. (Photo by Stefani Reynolds / AFP) ((Photo by STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images))
She Also Suffered with Morgellons Disease
As if polio wasn’t enough, Joni has also dealt with a little-known condition called Morgellons disease over the years.
According to the Mayo Clinic, Morgellons disease “is a condition characterized by a belief that parasites or fibers are emerging from the skin. People with this condition often report feeling as if something is crawling on or stinging their skin.”
To hear Joni tell it, Morgellons is an “incurable disease that seems like it’s from outer space.”
The singer described her symptoms in a 2010 Los Angeles Times interview as “fibers in a variety of colors protrude out of my skin like mushrooms after a rainstorm: they cannot be forensically identified as animal, vegetable or mineral.”
Wild, but thankfully, again, Joni has been able to manage it.
Joni Mitchell arrives for the 64th Annual Grammy Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on April 3, 2022. ((Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images))
The Brain Aneurysm That Nearly Killed Her
Then, if all of that wasn’t enough, in 2015, she suffered a debilitating brain aneurysm.
In an interview with CBS News 2022, following her first performance since the aneurysm, she revealed that she lost the ability to speak and walk, or even get out of a chair – as well as the ability to play the guitar.
Describing the experience as “a return to infancy,” she found the strength to push on and even relearned to play guitar by watching videos of herself “to see where I put my fingers.”
That same year, she was honored by the Kennedy Center for her artistic achievements. During the ceremony, she spoke briefly of the aneurysm, calling it a “real whopper,” before adding:
“But you know, I’m hobbling on. I’m doing alright.”
Sara Bareilles, Honoree Joni Mitchell, and Madison Cunningham attend MusiCares Person of the Year honoring Joni Mitchell at MGM Grand Marquee Ballroom on April 01, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. ((Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for The Recording Academy))
How Is Joni Mitchell Today?
To put it lightly, Joni Mitchell is making a massive comeback in 2024!
She has two big performances lined up for the year.
First, the Canadian folk musician will finally make her debut on the Grammys stage at this weekend’s awards ceremony on Sunday, February 4.
Joni is a nine-time Grammy winner, clinching her first award in 1969 with Best Folk Performance for ‘Clouds’.
Later on in the year, Joni will be making a triumphant return to Los Angeles. On Saturday, October 19, she will perform her first headlining show in 24 years at the Hollywood Bowl with the Joni Jam.
Can’t keep a good woman down!
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