Photo Credit @JustJared
August Alsina is one of the biggest names in today’s R&B and hip hop scene. Breaking into the industry with the mixtape The Product in 2012, his lyrical prose and soulful voice led to the singer signing with Radio Killa Records and coming out with the hit single I Luv This Sh*t the following year. Since then, his releases have never failed to chart, and he now boasts high-profile collaborations with the likes of rappers Trinidad James and Nicki Minaj.
However, one aspect of Alsina’s personal life has significantly impacted his music career: his health. He suffers from multiple medical conditions, many of which are chronic, degenerative, and autoimmune in nature. That led him to post what appeared to be a goodbye note on Instagram in October 2023, worrying his many followers.
Recently, however, these occurrences have appeared to give the singer a fresh outlook on life—and that’s arguably why his music career continues to flourish despite the many health obstacles he’s faced. Read on to learn more about what the famous R&B star has gone through and how he’s used that to further fuel his success.
Behind the singer’s frequent health struggles
The first signs of Alsina’s health issues emerged in 2014, when he fell into a three-day coma after collapsing on stage. After a year, he revealed that he underwent surgery to treat an unnamed degenerative eye disease. He later went on to specify the condition as being the blindness-causing keratoconus. In 2017, he further disclosed that he had liver disease, which he attributed to his family’s history with the condition—and in 2018, he confirmed he was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, an autoimmune disorder that attacks the body’s peripheral nerves. That led to his most recent publicized hospitalization in 2019, which resulted from a loss of mobility.
With the exception of Guillain-Barré syndrome, which is a rare neurological disorder, these
health issues aren’t just caused by genetics—they also have to do with Alsina’s ethnicity. Individuals of African American descent are more likely to have thinner corneas, making keratoconus more prevalent among the black community. Black men are also 60% more likely to be diagnosed with chronic liver disease. Both family medical history and the limited access to healthcare in marginalized communities may have increased Alsina’s risk of developing these conditions.
These health struggles significantly impacted his overall music career: the singer eventually left his label and took an extended hiatus. As a result, the release of his third studio album The Product III: stateofEMERGEncy—which he began working on in 2017—was delayed until June 2020. Despite that, it’s clear that the three years he took to care for his health were worth it. August Alsina came back to the industry stronger than ever—and his career’s been thriving ever since.
How Alsina’s music career continues to thrive
Credit: @augustalsina on Instagram
The reason why the R&B singer was able to bounce back so well is because he made managing his various health conditions his top priority. In the midst of his hiatus, he started an IV-based immunotherapy treatment plan to ease symptoms stemming from both liver disease and Guillain-Barré syndrome. “In short form it’s sort of like chemo but instead, for my immune system,” he shared on Instagram in 2019. “Only in this case, not killing the cells, but encouraging my nervous system & body to rebuild.” That emphasis on better self-care continued after his comeback, especially with regards to preserving his eyesight.
Today, you’ll often see him wearing corrective and protective eyewear at various public engagements. His black prescription glasses, not unlike the Michael Kors Castello and Brooks Brothers BB2060U models you’d find on Clearly, are a particularly essential go-to for the singer. That’s primarily because of their ability to accommodate various specialized lenses that can correct both single-vision and progressive prescriptions, which is the reason they’re considered the main treatment option for the vision distortions caused by keratoconus.
Alsina also takes advantage of UV-blocking sunglasses for the same reason Bono wears them to manage his glaucoma: their ability to shield against the light sensitivity that characterizes these blindness-causing diseases. This is something the singer’s been doing ever since his 2015 eye surgery. In fact, he even collaborated with the Vintage Frames Company to create his own sunglasses collection—and wore the range’s Fabolous model when he featured in DJ Khaled’s 2016 music video Do You Mind.
Alsina now continues to build himself up and spread positivity among his fans, sharing that he fights to be happier and healthier every day. He’s noted that he finds illness humbling, and that realization drives him to always do better, stating: “Life’s experience and teachings requires me to leave every part of myself all on the field.” The star also uses daily affirmations to practice self-love and motivate himself to reach new heights, and that’s significantly helped him bolster his well-being. It’s no wonder he’s been able to do well for himself following his hiatus, after which he’s been releasing hit after hit.
We’ve previously reported on his explosive music video for the song Entanglements. Released in September 2020, the track features Rick Ross, reflects on his past relationships—including his highly-publicized affair with Jada Pinkett-Smith—and charted at number 7 on Billboard’s Hot R&B Songs. His success didn’t stop there: in 2023, he released his fourth studio album, Myself. This time, he did so under his own label, Shake the World.
Given how well he was able to recover and continues to care for his health and well-being, August Alsina shows he has so much more to prove. Fans of the artist can undoubtedly look forward to bigger and better things from him as his music career continues to thrive.
© 2024, Seth "Digital Crates" Barmash. All rights reserved.
