Tony Bennett, Legendary Singer, Dead at 96
The music industry is in mourning.
Legendary singer Tony Bennett, who is best known for his performances of "I Left My Heart In San Francisco" and "Fly Me To The Moon," passed away at the age of 96, just two weeks before his birthday.
His publicist, Sylvia Weiner, confirmed the news to The Associated Press, stating that he died in his hometown of New York.
"Tony left us today but he was still singing the other day at his piano and his last song was, 'Because of You,' his first #1 hit," the singer's Twitter account penned on July 21. "Tony, because of you we have your songs in our heart forever."
While Bennett's cause of death has yet to be confirmed, the news comes seven years after the jazz crooner's Alzheimer's disease diagnosis.
His family opened up about Bennett's struggle with the disease in 2021, with his wife and then caretaker Susan Crow telling AARP, "He'd tell me, ‘Susan, I feel fine.' That's all he could process — that physically he felt great. So, nothing changed in his life. Anything that did change, he wasn't aware of."
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Bennett officially retired from performing in Aug. 2021, after two performances at New York City's Radio City Music Hall. He was joined on stage by frequent collaborator Lady Gaga.
“This was a hard decision for us to make, as he is a capable performer," Bennett's son and manager Danny said to Variety at the time. "This is, however, doctors’ orders... We’re not worried about him being able to sing. We are worried, from a physical stand point, about human nature."
The concert was recorded and later televised on CBS in November of that same year.
Bennett became a household name in 1962, thanks to his aforementioned single, "I Left My Heart In San Francisco," which spent 21 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that year. He previously made a splash with his takes on "Because of You" and "Rags to Riches," among other anthems.
Prior to his passing, Bennett notably nabbed 20 Grammy award wins, including a lifetime achievement award, with 41 nominations total.
In addition to his wife Susan and son Danny, Bennett is survived by his other children Dae, Joanna and Antonia.