The South Side native said that in his 33 years of life, he was never treated in hospital and considered himself very healthy. However, everything changed in November, when he was placed in intensive care due to COVID-19. He said he was not sure when and sometimes if he would be able to live.
A Grammy Award-nominated singer, producer and artist, Jeremih is used to making titles for his songs and talent, not for his health and certainly not because he fights for his life against COVID-19.
“It’s very real,” he said. “I had to go through it and I would hate for anyone else to have to go through it too.”
SEE: Full interview with Jeremih, Chance The Rapper
Jeremih said that a few days before he was hospitalized, he realized that something about his body felt stopped.
“Thinking back, I knew I was dehydrated and I could have thought I had a cold, so I took NyQuil,” he recalled. “It wasn’t like I had an immediate reaction to something. I knew something was wrong.”
From there, he said that all he could remember was a night waking up in the hospital, not knowing where he was and what had happened.
His diagnosis was complications due to COVID-19 and, as a result, his body suffered from multiple inflammatory syndrome, a condition that causes inflammation of major organs.
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“My heart was beating irregularly. My liver and kidneys were out. I can talk about this now, because, thank God, I succeeded and I’m still here, but I was on dialysis. I was on things I can only remember. that my grandparents were talking about me being so young, ”Jeremih said.
“They kept telling me that the numbers aren’t improving,” he added. “I’m like when my body was so bad? I’ve never had a problem with it all my life, in 33 years! To have everything closed, I’m just like, man.”
Jeremih said there were times when he thought about giving up. He wasn’t sure if he could fight anymore. But he thought of his mother and his two sons and knew he had to keep pushing to survive.
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For some people, especially young people, the news that the beloved singer was in intensive care with COVID-19 was a wake-up call, helping them realize that the virus was real and serious.
“If I had to be an example, I would take it, because a lot of people might consider it self-evident, but outside the party and among their friends. It happened to me and I am one of the few who succeeded, “he said.
The singer said that he must learn to eat and go to therapy again.
“I was thin. I got in there with a weight probably 220 and I went to 175. I’m like, I’m damn close to my skin and bones,” he said. “I wouldn’t want anyone to go through what I’ve been through.”
Now, he says, he feels much better and, as he continues to recover, he is not alone; Chances are the Rapper fought him every step of the way.
“This is one of my best friends!” He said chance. “The way you think about animators is like colleagues, this is my real friend. He knows my family, I know his family. So yes, we were all affected by that. ”
The two artists returned with a new collaboration, releasing a joint album entitled “Merry Christmas Lil Mama: The Gift that Keeps on Diving” and a holiday concert film first called “Chi-Town Christmas”.
“The whole project is very much from Chicago. The concert was filmed entirely in Chicago, trying to bring back the Chicago film industry. The Chicago Children’s Choir is in the film. Very Chicago production,” Chance said.
At a time when so many are unsure of the future, Chance and Jeremih hope that their new projects will help restore hope.
“You have to keep fighting. You have to keep going through it. You have to recognize it as part of your journey that will become your past later. There are green pastures ahead,” Chance said.
“I had time to sit down and reevaluate my entire life, career and purpose on this Earth right now,” Jeremih said.
Jeremih said he was grateful to Northwestern Memorial Hospital staff for helping him defeat the virus. This year he lost his father and grandfather, becoming a devastating year. But he wants to spend the next part of his life making his father, grandfather and the rest of Chicago proud.
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