Legendary singer Tony Bennett will be reuniting with Lady Gaga this Friday for an MTV Unplugged concert, in what may turn out to be one of his final live performances.
The concert comes just a few months after Bennett’s family revealed in an interview with AARP Magazine that he has been living with Alzheimer’s disease for the last four years.
Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga have previously collaborated on the 2014 album Cheek to Cheek, which won them a Grammy for best traditional pop vocal album. The duo also have a second album on the way, having spent two years recording it between 2018 and early 2020.
“Bennett and Lady Gaga grace the Unplugged stage for the first time, performing fresh renditions off their brand new jazz standards album — and a handful of surprises you definitely won’t want to miss,” reads MTV Unplugged’s announcement.
The duo will be performing the free concert this Friday, July 2, at 11 a.m. ET at a currently undisclosed location in New York. It’s not clear yet whether there will be a live TV broadcast.
Bennett, 94, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2016, but started showing real signs of decline in 2018, while he and Lady Gaga were recording their new album.
His condition has progressed since his diagnosis, but he is still able to perform. “He is doing so many things, at 94, that many people without dementia cannot do,” Dr. Gayatri Devi, who diagnosed Bennett, told AARP. “He really is the symbol of hope for someone with a cognitive disorder.”
“[When] he sings, he’s the old Tony,” added Susan Bennett, 54, who is the legendary singer’s third wife and main caregiver.
Bennett previously performed solo for MTV Unplugged in 1994.