A-ha frontman Morten Harket reveals Parkinson's diagnosis
A-ha frontman Morten Harket has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, he revealed in an article published on the band's website Wednesday.
The 'Take On Me' singer told biographer Jan Omdahl that he underwent a procedure for deep brain stimulation (DBS) in June 2024, addressing the left side of his brain, and a similar one in December for the right.
Parkinson's causes parts of one's brain to deteriorate and affects muscle control, balance and movement, as well as thinking ability and mental health, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
'The simple fact that, on good days, Morten shows virtually no sign of many of the most familiar physical symptoms of Parkinson's, doesn't mean that he is well,' wrote Omdahl, who penned the Norwegian band's 2003 biography, 'The Swing of Things.'
Omdahl recounted Harket's 'round-the-clock effort to balance medication, signals from the electrodes in his brain, sleep, blood sugar and mindset in a way that keeps the symptoms and side effects more or less in check,' though it 'isn't always successful.'
Harket said he doesn't 'expect to be able to achieve full technical control' of his voice anymore, even as he works on unreleased music.
'The question is whether I can express myself with my voice,' he told Omdahl. 'As things stand now, that's out of the question.'
Harket, however, told fans not to worry and instead 'spend your energy and effort addressing real problems, and know that I am being taken care of.'
A-ha — a synth-pop trio whose members also include Magne Furuholmen and Paul Waaktaar-Savoy — is best known for their 1980s hits 'Take On Me,' 'Cry Wolf' and 'The Sun Always Shines on TV.' The band split in 2009 but briefly reunited in 2015.
The music video for 'Take On Me' hit 1 billion views in early 2020 and crossed the 2 billion-view threshold this past September.
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