Soul legend Candi Staton reveals she has breast cancer
1 November 2018, 12:21
The singer received the news on the first day of her summer tour rehearsals.
Soul singer Candi Staton - best known for her disco classic 'Young Hearts Run Free' - began 12 weeks of chemotherapy on Tuesday (October 30).
In a statement, she said: "I decided to keep it to myself and do some soul searching.
"I went through all of the emotions: denial, 'poor me' and anger. It really helped me to be on the road, doing something I love to do, and was born to do."
Staton also spoke about her difficulties in life, and how she planned to overcome this latest setback: "After all I've gone through in my life - the domestic abuse, the bad relationships, alcoholism, fighting with record labels for royalties and all of that stuff - it's the last thing I ever expected to go through, but I'm going through it and I plan to beat it."
Candi Staton - Young Hearts Run Free 1976.
Speaking about how she got tested after noticing a lump on her left breast, she said: "I was in a state of disbelief. I was like, 'Did you just say 'carcinoma'? I was in shock.
"I've always taken such good care of myself. How in the world did this happen to me?" she told Rolling Stone.
"You go through your down days, you go through your pity days, but then you come up the next day and you say, 'I'm not going to take this'. You're not going to take my life. I'm going to fight."
Candi Staton is also known for providing the vocals on the dance classic 'You Got the Love' by The Source. She released her 30th album Unstoppable earlier this year.
