After 'The Masked Singer', Michael Bolton Revealed He Had a Brain Tumor

Legendary singer and social activist Michael Bolton has been a household name since the '70s. With songs like "When a Man Loves a Woman" and "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You?," Michael is known for his powerful, ballad-style songs.

But in recent years as Michael has gotten older, he has quietly stepped away from the spotlight. Is the singer sick?

While he still performs frequently, he hasn't put out any new songs in a minute.

Instead, he's been keeping busy re-releasing new versions of his classics and making appearances on reality music competition series like American Song Contest.

In March 2023, he actually appeared on Season 9 of The Masked Singer. However, as fans watched him on the live show, they felt like something was off with him. He then made a shocking announcement regarding his illness via Facebook in January 2024. Is Michael OK? Here's an update on the musician's health.

During the March 8, 2023, episode of Season 9 of The Masked Singer, it was revealed that Michael was behind the Wolf. Following his big unveiling, fans took to Twitter to comment on the Grammy-winning singer's appearance.

"What’s wrong with Michael Bolton? On The Masked Singer tonight he looked dazed and moved like he was an elderly man on his deathbed. No emotion whatsoever," tweeted one fan.

Another wrote: "Did Michael Bolton look sick to anyone but me? Maybe it was the heat but there was no animation in his voice."

Although Michael initially didn't disclose any information regarding any potential medical issues, he later took to Facebook to announce details of a sudden illness he was battling. On Jan. 5, 2024, Michael announced on Facebook that he had a brain tumor, which was discovered right before the holidays. His message begins, "Just before the holidays, it was discovered that I had a brain tumor, which required immediate surgery. Thanks to my incredible medical team, the surgery was a success."

He went on to explain that he would was "recuperating at home and surrounded by the tremendous love and support of my family." While the singer suspects that it the recovery process will take a few months, he assured fans that he is "working hard to accelerate [his] recovery and get back to performing soon."

While this marks the first mention of a serious illness, it isn't the first time Michael has had to step away from performing. In 2019, he took to Twitter to announce that he had been advised by medical professionals to sit out his show in Finland.

He wrote in a tweet, "My dear fans in Finland, it is with a heavy heart that, under doctors' orders, I will be unable to perform at my show in Oulu on Friday due to illness. I struggled through the show in Tampere and have been ordered to rest and get treatment."

That wasn't the end of his health-related cancelations. Several fans voiced their concerns after Michael postponed several U.K. performances in October 2021, though further details about his condition were not disclosed at the time.

By the looks of it, it's possible that he came down with a minor illness in the fall of 2021 — which could have warranted a few-day break. Either way, Michael seems to have recovered quickly and gotten back on stage to perform a string of concerts in the U.K. in the second half of October 2021.

Over the past few years, Michael's gestures have led some fans to speculate that he has Parkinson's disease. "Just watched an interview with Michael Bolton. Pretty sure he has Parkinson’s disease," wrote one fan in February 2023.

Another fan also speculated Michael had the health condition back in 2019, claiming that he "sounded great, but [his] movement and look were disturbing."

Michael has never responded to any of these rumors.

Other music legends akin to Michael like Tony Bennett and Ozzy Osbourne have publicly opened up about serious medical diagnoses they've received. In February 2021, Tony announced he had Alzheimer's disease, while Ozzy shared that he has Parkinson's disease in January 2020.