What happened to Anastacia - double cancer battle, TV controversy and divorce (2024)

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In the year 2000 you couldn't turn on the radio without being greeted by Anastacia's soulful vocals in her hit song I'm Outta Love.

The singer was born in Illinois in 1968, and aged just 13 she was diagnosed with Crohn's disease, an inflammatory bowel disease that can be extremely debilitating.

It would be the first of many health battles Anastacia, 53, suffered throughout her life.

She has previously spoken of how relatively late her pop career began, as she was in her 30s and she was even forced to lie about her age in order to take part in an MTV talent contest.

"When I got my record contract, I was living off unemployment benefits. I didn’t think I would ever make it," she told Service Plan.

"I saw myself as the artist who would never experience success. In my early 20s, I was working as a dancer when someone from the music business heard my voice, but told me that my sound just didn’t quite fit into any category.

"He said, 'You sound like Chaka Khan, but you can tell that you didn’t grow up in the ghetto.'

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"And why would I? I’m white. For a Black audience, my voice was too white, and for a white audience it was too Black."

In 2002, Anastacia was achieving worldwide fame with her hits Paid My Dues and One Day In Your Life - but her career would come to a sudden halt when she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

"I thought to myself, 'I have nothing. What’s going to happen to me?' I was in total shock. I thought I was going to die. And then I began to fight," she recalled.

The star took two years off for gruelling radiotherapy, and when she had recovered she returned with a pop-rock album led by single Left Outside Alone, which was a major success.

Following her treatment, she was inspired to establish the Anastacia Fund to promote awareness of breast cancer among younger women.

Her health scare inspired her songwriting in numerous ways - but sadly it caused her voice to lose its power and she became unable to record music, instead focusing on writing lyrics instead.

But the star went on to headline four tours and win an MTV Europe Music Award.

Aged 39, bad luck would strike Anastacia again as she was diagnosed with heart condition superventricular tachycardia, which causes a sudden faster heartbeat than normal.

And then in 2013, the worst happened - her breast cancer returned.

She was forced to cancel her upcoming European tour and underwent a double mastectomy, writing in a statement: "It has been an intense journey but l am feeling great and ready to start the next chapter.

"Breast Cancer Awareness Month gives all who are facing this disease a chance to gain strength and support from each other.

"Early detection has saved my life twice. I will continue to battle and lend my voice in any way I can," she added.

The star said her choice to have the double mastectomy was already made when she was given the news the cancer was back, as she had expected it to happen and had ten years to decide what she would do if it did.

In recognition of her decade-long charitable efforts in breast cancer awareness, Anastacia became only the second woman to be presented with the Humanitarian Award at the GQ Men of the Year Awards that year.

Incredibly, she has now had the all-clear from cancer after a long battle comprising ten procedures and five surgeries.

In a powerful photo on the cover of FAULT magazine, Anastacia proudly displayed her scars from the operation that saved her life.

"My scars are part of my journey and a reminder of all the things I went through with my mastectomy," she said.

"At this point, I feel great to show them in a way that’s artistic."

Anastacia had overcome the worst, but when she returned to the music scene her albums failed to sell as well and she felt lost as technology changed the industry forever, with people opting to stream illegally rather than buy CDs.

She said she was pressured to shift into an R&B sound, feature rappers on her songs and use autotune - but she refused, and it cost her record sales but she maintained her integrity as an artist.

Anastacia married her bodyguard Wayne Newton in 2007 and she became a step-mother to his two children from a previous relationship, but the couple filed for divorce in April 2010.

During their relationship, Anastacia had their initials 'A&W' tattooed on her neck, and the singer insists she doesn't regret the tattoo despite their split.

In 2016, Anastacia had a controversial stint on Strictly Come Dancing where she was paired with Brendan Cole.

"After my double mastectomy, it stripped away a part of me that I feel I would like to find again," she said of her decision to take part.

"This opportunity has come at a perfect time to help me use and get to know my upper body again."

But her past health issues would come back to haunt her and she tore scar tissue from her operation while rehearsing.

It meant she couldn't take part in the dance off against Melvin Odoom and Janette Manrara, and so it went to an audience vote and her opponents were eliminated.

The decision was controversial, resulting in a number of complaints, and reportedly caused judge Bruno Tonioli to threaten to quit.

Two years later, Anastacia returned to Strictly for the Italian version of the show, where she encountered an awkward wardrobe malfunction that saw her flash her knickers and almost a lot more after a high kick.

And earlier this year, she won the third series of The Masked Singer Australia having been disguised as the Vampire.

She explained on Instagram she'd only just had surgery on her neck to fix two herniated discs that were "pretty much on top of each other", and her doctor had warned wearing a heavy costume was "asking for trouble".

This week, Anastacia announced a UK and Europe comeback tour to celebrate 22 years since she released I'm Outta Love.

The tour was originally planned to take place on the 20th anniversary but the pandemic delayed it by two years.

Kicking off in Switzerland, the European tour has stops in Rome, Berlin and Prague, before heading back for a UK leg which includes a date at London’s Hammersmith Eventim Apollo on November 8th 2022.

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