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Frankie Valli is a beloved crooner with a career spanning seven decades as frontman of the Four Seasons.
The Four Seasons leader's Oct. 25 concert in the Alamo City comes as recent viral concert videos prompt concern among fans about his fitness to perform.
Some of those clips show Valli barely moving his lips, holding his microphone far below his mouth, prompting online speculation that he's lip synching. Other clips show him missing musical cues as he stares blankly at the audience.
Valli turned 90 in May but maintains a rigorous touring schedule, which has drawn concern and sometimes mockery from music fans online.
An Instagram video shared by widely read music blog Stereogum shows a confused-looking Valli muddling through a song. "Whoever keeps sending Frankie Valli out on stage at this point is committing elder abuse," reads the image.
Other social-media users have turned the clips into a meme-able moment, parodying the minimal effort exhibited by Valli. One commenter called him "Uncanny Valli," while another posted, "I love Frankie Valli but come on, it's time for retirement."
The online chatter got so loud that Valli released a statement to People magazine on Monday.
“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," Valli said. "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.”
“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," Valli said. "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,” Valli continued in the statement to People. “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,” Valli concluded. “Like that line in Jersey Boys, I’m like that bunny on TV, that just keeps going and going and going. Chasing the music.”
“I plan to be doing shows as long as I can, delivering that great Four Seasons sound,” Valli concluded. “Like that line in Jersey Boys, I’m like that bunny on TV, that just keeps going and going and going. Chasing the music.”
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