Matthew Sweet, the veteran alt-rock singer-songwriter behind Nineties hit singles “Girlfriend” and “I’ve Been Waiting,” has suffered a stroke.
His longtime manager, Russell Carter, confirmed the news in a statement to Rolling Stone on Tuesday, and said Sweet was forced to cancel his cross-country tour and shows with fellow musicians after “suffering a debilitating stroke in Toronto late Saturday evening” on Oct. 12. “Matthew was quickly admitted to Toronto Western Hospital where he was put into excellent care and taken out of immediate danger. Matthew was transferred to a rehabilitation center back home in Omaha today where he will undergo extensive therapy,” read Carter’s statement.
Sweet’s family and friends have also setup a GoFundMe to help cover medical costs, as the musician currently doesn’t have “insurance or touring income,” per the page. Catherine Lyons, of Russell Carter Artist Management, who set up the GoFundMe, wrote that while “doctors and hospital care in Toronto were instrumental in saving Matthew’s life,” the health care “is not free for Americans in Canada.”
Lyons adds that for the next six weeks, Sweet will require “around-the-clock care and therapy” followed by months of treatment and rehabilitation.
In his statement, Carter said that Matthew’s “primary source of income — like most professional musicians — is live touring,” and that the musician “cannot perform for the foreseeable future.”
Earlier this month, the singer’s Instagram account shared a post announcing that health issues forced Sweet to cancel shows. He had been opening for the group Hanson at the time. “Due to a medical illness and on doctors advice, Matthew Sweet must cancel all remaining upcoming shows with Hanson, and his own headline dates, from October 10 thru November 16,” read the post on social media.
In Carter’s statement, he said that Sweet is “now on a long, difficult road to recovery.” He added that the singer-songwriter “has always been intensely focused and tenacious in all of his endeavors — not only in his recording career, but in all of his artistic and intellectual pursuits. I am confident that his signature determination will serve him well as he focuses now on recovery to good health.”
