Amy Grant shares journey of relearning to sing after accident and surgery to remove throat cyst
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: The 'Baby Baby' singer Amy Grant has opened up on the fallout from her horrific bike accident in 2022, revealing that she still struggles with balance and short-term memory.
In a recent interview with E! News, Grant talked about how the collision, which happened in Nashville in July 2022, affected her recuperation and how she had to relearn how to sing after a cyst in her throat was found.
Amy Grant opened up about 2022 bike crash
The 'Breath of Heaven' singer, 63, revealed that she was unaware at the time of how the accident had traumatized an already-existing cyst in her throat, causing it to 'hypergrowth', necessitating a lengthy surgical procedure to remove.
"I had this five-hour surgery and they took it out. So I actually had to learn to sing again," Grant remarked. She continued by saying that even though she turned down the surgeons' offer of a facelift during the procedure, she still noticed that her "neck was a little tighter" when she woke up.
"I just felt like an old, beat-up car that went in and got a paint job and had the dents knocked out," she remarked about the procedure, "That's a gift."
Regarding the accident itself, Grant said that she is still addressing various persistent medical conditions. "I still have issues with my short-term memory," Grant remarked, "My balance is still weird."
"I made a joke about it last night. You know, sometimes I walk around like I'm drunk and I just have to laugh about all of it," she quipped.
"I can't remember what I can't remember," Grant continued, "I don't know if I'll get back on a bike. There's so many great sports to enjoy and so... who knows."
She did, however, stated that she is still excited to tour and share her music in the interim.
"I do feel the love, and my reasons for touring are — I don't get on stage because I need to hear applause — I have always loved creating spaces, and I do think that it feels like that continues to matter," she told the news organization.
Amy Grant previously opened up about the cyst removal
Grammy Award winner Amy Grant, who is married to country singer Vince Gill, discussed the cyst excision in an interview with 'Today's Craig Melvin from March 2023.
The singer has had open heart surgery, a horrific bike accident, and a cyst removed from her throat—all in a span of three years.
In an interview with Today's Craig Melvin, Grant said: "[I was] working with a vocalist and she said, 'What is happening in your throat? Lean your head back.'"
"And I said, 'I know. It's like I've got an Adam's apple that keeps getting bigger.' Unbeknownst to me, I'd had a thyroglossal duct cyst."
EXCLUSIVE: @CraigMelvin sat down with Grammy-winner @amygrant as she speaks out for the first time after a brain injury sustained in a bicycle accident. Grant says she is ready to come back and will be giving us music for the first time in a decade. pic.twitter.com/4iOLYYmIoX
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) March 1, 2023
Stating that she was already feeling better, Grant added, "I feel fantastic. I mean, really from 2020 on, I feel like I had to… if I were a car, I've made a lotta trips to the shop."
"And I feel like I'm emerging. I went, 'Oh man, I feel like a classic now.' And actually sort of re-revved up in a really beautiful way."
Grant added that she has drawn into her faith to help her cope with everything that she has recently encountered.
"It's helped me not be afraid. And just to go, however this turns out, I believe I'm held by love, just like I believe that about you, and everybody I meet," she said at the time.
The Cleveland Clinic states that thyroglossal duct cysts are a birth defect that can generally be benign but can impair a person's ability to swallow, drink, or, in Grant's case, sing.
Grant's representative told PEOPLE at the time of the accident in 2022 that she had been taken to the hospital and was in stable condition following her accident while riding with a friend.
Grant experienced her accident following open-heart surgery in February 2021 to treat a rare congenital cardiac issue that her doctor had found during a checkup the previous year.