Gospel singer Kelly Price is speaking out about rumors she was missing, as she said she was hospitalized with coronavirus in a critical health battle in which she was clinically dead.
The vocalist, 48, told TMZ that she was never missing, but had intentionally isolated from her family, who she said she doesn’t keep regular contact with.
The New York-born singer said that doctors and medical staff were able to revive her after she flatlined amid diminished health due to the virus.
The latest: Gospel singer Kelly Price, 48, is speaking out about rumors she was missing, as she said she was hospitalized with coronavirus in a critical health battle in which she was clinically dead. She was pictured at the 2019 Black Music Honors awards in Atlanta
Price said she remains receiving oxygen, and that speaking was hard to do, but she felt it important to give her account of what was going on.
It was not immediately clear if Price has been vaccinated, the outlet reported, noting that they asked her lawyer Monica Ewing, but did not receive a definitive response.
Price told the outlet the varied accounts of her disappearance were a result of a family rift with her sister and others.
Price’s sister Shanrae Cheree Price told BNC News on Friday that the family is ‘frantic’ as they try to locate the gospel singer after she was reported missing in Georgia.
Kelly Price’s sister Shanrae Cheree Price told BNC News on Friday that her family hadn’t seen Price in ‘well over a month’ after she was reported missing in Georgia following a hospital stay for Covid-19
Last time: According to Shanrae, her niece and nephew last saw Price in the hospital on August 13, prior to her being discharged; Price seen in 2019 in Las Vegas
Shanrae Cheree Price claimed family members hadn’t seen Kelly in ‘well over a month’ since she was discharge from a hospital after testing positive for the virus.
Price’s sister shared her concerns shortly after Ewing told TMZ that the singer is not missing and is continuing to recover at an undisclosed location. According to Shanrae, her niece and nephew last saw Kelly in the hospital on August 13, prior to her being discharged.
She said family members were ‘confused,’ ‘upset’ and ‘scared’ for Price.
‘Please, Kelly, if you’re OK, please just show up,’ she begged. ‘Go to the cops, do something, but we have to see you physically.’
Shanrae also urged anyone who might know about her Price’s whereabouts to come forward.
Urgent plea: ‘Please, Kelly, if you’re OK, please just show up,’ she begged. ‘Go to the cops, do something, but we have to see you physically.’
Leading the way: Shanrae also clarified that she had gone to Price’s house and requested a welfare check that was performed by police
Needs proof: She wanted to see Price in the flesh. ‘We can’t just take tapes or messages, we have to physically see my sister. I have to see her and make sure she’s OK,’ she said. ‘I am frantic’
She confirmed that Price’s family had gotten no updates on her sister’s condition after she was discharged from the hospital.
Shanrae also clarified that she had gone to Price’s house and requested a welfare check that was performed by police.
‘We haven’t seen her. We haven’t heard her. We don’t know where my sister is,’ she said. ‘We can’t just take tapes or messages, we have to physically see my sister. I have to see her and make sure she’s OK. I am frantic.’
Kelly Price was previously reported missing in Georgia after she was released from the hospital after contracting COVID-19 in July.
The singer, who had released a new album earlier this year, has been listed as a missing person following the welfare check conducted at her home last Saturday, according to Cobb County police officials.
Price told her fans on Instagram that she had tested positive for COVID on July 29. She was hospitalized a few days later and released in late August
Price’s family said her boyfriend, Terrell Babers, pictured with Price in 2020, had kept them from visiting her when she was released from the hospital
Authorities had found no evidence of foul play after searching Price’s home and speaking with her boyfriend, Terrell Babers. Price’s family had accused Babers of keeping them away from visiting her at her home when she was discharged early from the hospital in late August.
In an Instagram video, Price revealed that she had contracted COVID-19 on July 29.
‘I am COVID positive. I’m following Dr’s orders. I’m quarantined. Feeling really drained. Splitting headache but I’m not in the hospital. I’m grateful and expecting to have a quick recovery,’ she said to her followers.
Price was admitted to a hospital a few days later.
The family told TMZ that they had been visiting her while she was recovering in the hospital, but were shocked to learn that she was released three weeks later despite not appearing healthy enough to leave.
Price began her career in 1998 and grew as an R&B and gospel singer. She’s pictured performing at the Soul Train Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2019
The concerned family had called the Cobb County Police Department to conduct the welfare check on September 18.
The department said the incident is currently under investigation, and Price has been officially listed missing with the National Crime Information Center.
Price is a Grammy-nominated singer who first debuted as an R&B singer in 1998. She gained national fame with her first gospel album, This Is Who I Am, 15 years ago.
She released her second gospel album, Grace, on April 2.