Roberta Flack has ALS, now ‘impossible to sing,’ rep says

NEW YORK (AP) — A representative for Roberta Flack has announced that the legendary musician has ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and can no longer sing. Flack’s manager Suzanne Koga said in a release Monday that the progressive disease “has made it impossible to sing and not easy to speak” but will not “silence this icon.” The announcement of the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis diagnosis comes just ahead of the premiere of “Roberta,” a feature-length documentary debuting Thursday at the DOCNYC film festival. The release says that the 85-year-old “Killing Me Softly With His Song” singer “plans to stay active in her musical and creative pursuits.”