Jazz singer Tony Bennett: questions about the cause of death

Tony Bennett is one of the few musicians who were active in the music scene from the 50’s to the 2020’s. The world famous crooner and 20-time Grammy Award winner has died at the age of 96.

His publicist, Sylvia Weiner, confirmed Bennett’s death and said he passed away in his hometown of New York. However, his official cause of death – just two weeks before his 97th birthday – has not yet been announced.

A few years ago, Bennett himself proudly said that he had good Italian genes and that he kept fit even in old age.

Tony Bennett suffered from dementia

It is known, however, that the singer had been suffering from Alzheimer’s for seven years. However, that didn’t stop him from going on tour again in 2021. His performances with Lady Gaga also found a large audience.

Alzheimer’s is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects the brain and leads to a gradual deterioration in cognitive function. As the disease progresses, abnormal proteins, such as amyloid beta plaques and tau proteins, build up in the brain, leading to damage and loss of nerve cells.

Death usually does not occur directly from Alzheimer’s disease itself, but from the effects it has on the brain and body. During the course of the disease, people with Alzheimer’s can experience a variety of complications that can eventually become life-threatening. These include infections, the consequences of serious falls, difficulty swallowing and malnutrition and a general weakening of the entire body.

Life crises and drug addiction

Several life crises had cost Bennett a lot of strength in his early years. For example, in his 2011 memoir All The Things You Are: The Life of Tony Bennett, he revealed that he was broke and addicted to various substances and at times close to death. Bennett also recounted snorting cocaine and smoking marijuana, attributing the self-injurious behavior to his financial hardship in the 1970s and ’80s.