Grammy-winning singer Muni Long is opening up about one of the most difficult chapters of her life, revealing that doctors once told her she had only one week to live before undergoing a life-saving double lung transplant.
After battling Lupus and continuing to perform while suffering from pneumonia during a tour, Long said her health rapidly declined, leading doctors to deliver a devastating prognosis.
“I’m like, it sounds like you have a time. How long do I have to live? And they go, a week. One week. And my jaw dropped literally. I was like, ‘That’s rude.’”
Faced with an impossible decision, Long said doctors told her she could either enter hospice care or move forward with a double lung transplant.
The singer admitted that concerns about her career initially weighed heavily on her mind.
“The ego and the vanity was like, what about my voice? What’s going to happen?”
Ultimately, she said thoughts of her son and her future helped her make the choice.
“But I look at my son and I think about how much more life that I have to live. And I think just quality of life was first. I can’t sing if I’m not here.”
Now six months after the transplant, Long says she is doing “fabulous,” although her voice continues to heal as she recovers from the major procedure.
Her story has inspired fans around the world, highlighting both the seriousness of lupus and the resilience that has defined her journey back to health.
