The legendary 90 year-old singer and songwriter Frankie Valli started his musical career in 1951. He achieved fame with the group Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, with hits like “Sherry”, “Big Girls Don’t Cry” and “Walk Like a Man”.
Recently, videos from his current tour went viral on the internet because he wasn’t singing in sync with the playback and sometimes barely moved his mouth. This led fans to comment that it might be ‘elder abuse,’ suggesting someone was possibly forcing him to tour despite his inability to perform. However, in an official statement to People, the musician said that he is touring because he wants to.
Frankie Valli responds to people who criticized his recent live shows
“I know there has been a lot of stuff on the internet about me lately so I wanted to clear the air. I am blessed to be 90 years old and still be doing what I love to do and as long as I am able, and audiences want to come see me, I am going to be out there performing as I always. I absolutely love what I do. And I know we put on a great show because our fans are still coming out in force and the show still rocks.”
“How do we do the show?! The Four Seasons sound was always about layering vocals and instruments. We use our 60 years of experience so we sound like the records. I sing, I have singers who sing, great arrangements….everything. I get a chuckle from the comments wondering if someone forcing me to go on stage. Nobody has ever made me do anything I didn’t want to do.”
“I plan to be doing shows as long as I can, delivering that great Four Seasons sound. Like that line in Jersey Boys, I’m like that bunny on TV, that just keeps going and going and going. Chasing the music,” Frankie Valli said.