Tony Bennett (real name Anthony Dominick Benedetto) is dead at 96 years old. Publicist Sylvia Weiner confirmed the iconic singer’s death to The Associated Press, saying he died in his hometown of New York today (July 21). A cause of death has not yet been confirmed, but Bennett was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016. The singer’s 97th birthday was coming up on August 3.
Bennett’s career as a recording artist began in the 1950s. His debut single was released in 1951 and it topped the charts in the US. He released his signature song, “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” in 1962. He maintained a successful career for decades and in later years, he became known for his two collaborative albums with Lady Gaga: Cheek To Cheek in 2014 and Love For Sale in 2021. All in all, Bennett ended up winning 19 Grammy Awards (in 2022, he became the second-oldest person to ever win a Grammy). His final live performances were shows with Gaga at Radio City Music Hall in 2021.
In a 2021 interview on The Late Show, Gaga got emotional speaking about Bennett and Alzheimer’s, saying in part, “I love him very deeply, and watching him begin his journey with Alzheimer’s years ago, I remember I wanted to make good on a promise I made to him. […] He goes, ‘Hey Lady!’ That’s what he calls me, he calls me ‘Lady.’ ‘Hey Lady, we need to make a Cole Porter record, all Cole Porter songs, all love songs.’ […] Then a couple years later, his Alzheimer’s just started to set on and I said, ‘Let’s go into the studio now,’ and we did. And when I tell you that when jazz begins, this man lights up in a way that is such magic. It just reminded me that anybody that has a family member or somebody that they love that’s suffering from Alzheimer’s or dementia, music is… music is magic. Music is a miracle.”
