Madonna showed that she’s a fighter as she made her return to the stage for her Celebration tour on Saturday, October 14. As the popstar, 65, kicked off the tour at London’s O2 Arena, she spoke out about her battle with a bacterial infection back in June. Madonna got real with fans about how frightened she was during the hospitalization during the show.
The “Like A Virgin” singer revealed that as she was battling both she and her medical professionals thought that things were taking a turn for the worst. “It’s been a crazy year for me. I didn’t think I was going to make it, neither did my doctors,” she said, via Entertainment Tonight. “That’s why I woke up with all of my children sitting around me.”
Amid the hospitalization, Madonna revealed that she had almost a week where she didn’t remember what had happened. “I forgot five days of my life – or my death. I don’t really know where I was,” she told the packed-out audience.
Ultimately, she revealed that she knew she had to “pull through” for her six kids. “I thought, ‘I’ve got to be there for my children. I have to survive for them,'” she said. The singer then launched into an acoustic cover of Gloria Gaynor’s disco classic “I Will Survive.”
Madonna was hospitalized back in June, and she was forced to postpone the American dates of her Celebration tour to recover. As she was recovering, she shared an update with fans in July, thanking them for their support. “I’m on the road to recovery and incredibly grateful for all the blessings in my life,” she said. “My focus now is my health and getting stronger, and I assure you, I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
In her statement, Madonna said her kids were her first concern, but she also wanted to make sure that she was able to perform for her fans all over the world. She also wanted to show off all the hard work that went into the show. “I hate to disappoint anyone,” she said.