Lewis Capaldi Says He’s ‘Noticed a Marked Improvement’ Amid Battle With Tourette’s, Anxiety
Six months after Lewis Capaldi announced he was “taking a break” from music and touring amid his battle with Tourette’s syndrome, the singer revealed that he’s “noticed a marked improvement” in his condition since June.
In a lengthy New Year’s Eve post on social media — his first statement since he announced his hiatus — Capaldi wrote to fans, “As most of you will know, I’m currently taking some time off to focus on my health and wellbeing and it’s been going great! I’ve been working with some incredible professionals to help me learn about and cope better with Tourette’s and anxiety issues. I’m really happy to say I’ve noticed a marked improvement in both since.”
Capaldi continued, “I was completely overwhelmed by the reaction to the news that I was taking a break and genuinely want to thank each and every one of you who reached out, left a comment, tweet or dm wishing me well, the support was like nothing I’ve ever experienced and has made me more excited than ever to return to what I love at some point in the not too distant future.”
The singer also thanked fans for their support of his second album Broken By the Desire to Be Heavenly Sent, as Capaldi’s own promotion of the LP was curtailed by his Tourette’s diagnosis and anxiety issues; following a performance at Glastonbury, Capaldi canceled all subsequent tour dates.
As a gift to fans, Capaldi announced that at midnight New Year’s, he would drop an “extended edition” of Broken By the Desire to Be Heavenly Sent, featuring five additional tracks.
“Prior to my decision to fuck off for a bit, I’d always hoped to release an extended version at some point!” Capaldi wrote. “After some back-and-forth about whether or not it was the right thing to do, I’ve decided it would be a shame for these five extra songs, which are so incredibly special to me, to sit on my hard driver, never to see the light of day.”
While Capaldi spent the second half of 2023 working on “looking after myself,” the singer did make a surprise onstage cameo in July at a Vamps concert in London. Since then, however, he’s been out of the public eye.
“For now I’m going to continue taking some time to carry on looking after myself, maybe writing some new music and taking a moment to reflect on some of the most incredible years of my life,” he wrote. “I want to make absolutely sure I’m 100% before getting back out there properly for more shows and doing what I love more than anything!”