Tony Bennett has died at the age of 96. The legendary pop and jazz crooner passed away on Friday morning in New York City following a battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
Born Anthony Dominick Benedetto, Bennett released his first album, Because of You, in 1952 and went on to chart in America in every subsequent decade of his life. He is perhaps best known for his 1962 signature song I Left My Heart in San Francisco.
Over the course of his eight-decade career, he won 20 Grammys, including the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2001, released more than 70 albums, and sold more than 50 million records worldwide.
He received renewed attention late in his career thanks to his collaborations with Lady Gaga. Together, they released their 2014 album of jazz standards, Cheek to Cheek, and the 2021 follow-up, Love for Sale.
They went on tour to promote the former album, which made Bennett the oldest living act to reach number one on the U.S. album chart. For the second release, Bennett earned a Guinness World Record for becoming the oldest musician to release a collection of new material.
Bennett was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016 but didn’t go public with his condition until 2021. He went on to perform his final shows alongside Gaga later that year.
Bennett, who was married three times, is survived by his children Danny, Dae, Joanna and Antonia and his third wife Susan Crow.
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