Over the weekend, Madonna kicked off her Celebration Tour at London’s O2 Arena — much to the excitement of fans. However, the tour had originally been delayed, because the singer faced life-threatening health issues.
During the night, she addressed the crowd, as the news of her being in the hospital this summer made headlines.
“It’s been a crazy year for me,” Madonna said. “I didn’t think I was going to make it, neither did my doctors. That’s why I woke up with all of my children sitting around me.”
“I forgot five days of my life – or my death. I don’t really know where I was,” she added, according to Entertainment Tonight. “If you want to know my secret and how I pulled through and how I survived, I thought, ‘I’ve got to be there for my children. I have to survive for them.’”
At the time, Madonna had suffered a “serious bacterial infection” that led to her having to stay in an intensive care unit. Eventually, she used Instagram to update that she was recovering.
Given a few months have passed, she seems to be back in full swing, though. During the show, Madonna played a bunch of her biggest hits like “Hung Up” and “Like A Prayer” — with most of the setlist being songs she hadn’t performed in years.
Madonna is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.