Roberta Flack is unable to sing after ALS diagnosis

Grammy-winning musician Roberta Flack has been left unable to sing after being diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

The Killing Me Softly with His Song performer is also having difficulty speaking, her manager said on Monday.

Flack, 85, has won four Grammy awards and received 14 nominations.

A documentary about her life is set to premiere next week in New York. She also has plans to publish a children’s book in January.

Her condition – Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) – “has made it impossible to sing and not easy to speak,” her management said in a statement.

There is no known cure for ALS, which is also known as motor neuron disease (MND). It is caused by the death of the nerves that carry messages from the brain to people’s muscles. It affects their ability to move, talk and even breathe.

The timing of Flack’s film and book release next year coincides with the 50th anniversary of her fourth album Killing Me Softly With His Song, which was released in 1973.

After the singer suffered a stroke in 2016, she told the Associated Press news agency that wants her songs to be remembered as “classics” and not just an “old hit”.

“I could sing any number of songs that I’ve recorded through the years, easily, I could sing them, but I’m going to pick those songs that move me,” Flack said.

“Now that’s hard to do. To be moved, to be moved constantly by your own songs.”