Singer Lewis Capaldi Reveals He Has Tourette’s Syndrome

Scottish singer/songwriter, Lewis Capaldi, revealed that he has been diagnosed with Tourette’s syndrome.

The musician, 25, on Monday shared the news with his fans during an Instagram Live, noting that he’s always had it despite never knowing. Capaldi explained that his shoulder twitches often because of it.

“The worst thing about it is when I’m excited I get it, when I’m stressed I get it, when I’m happy I get it. It happens all the time,” he adds of his involuntary twitches. “Some days it’s more painful than others and some days it’s less painful. It looks a lot worse than it is. Sometimes it’s quite uncomfortable … but it comes and goes.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, Tourette’s syndrome is a disorder “that involves repetitive movements or unwanted sounds (tics) that can’t be easily controlled.” The tics typically begin to manifest between the ages of 2 and 15, and males are three to four times more likely to develop the disorder than females.

The “Someone You Loved” singer told his followers that he originally thought he had “some horrible degenerative disease.” He said being diagnosed with Tourette’s “makes so much sense” after noticing his twitching in old interviews from 2018.

“I do the shoulder twitch quite a lot. And you see underneath every TikTok and stuff, people are like, ‘Why is he twitching?’, which is fine. Curiosity is fine. I get it,” Capaldi said, noting that he spoke out about the disorder because he didn’t want people to think he was “taking cocaine.”

“It’s a new thing, I haven’t really learned much about it I’m learning,” he said. “I’ve got Botox on my shoulder to stop it moving. It worked for a bit.”

Emma McNally, CEO of Tourettes Action, praised the singer for sharing his diagnosis.

“Tourette’s affects 1 in 100 school aged children, however the public perception is that it affects only a minority,” she told The Guardian. “Lewis Capaldi speaking out about his diagnosis will hopefully encourage others who are in the public eye to do the same.”

“The more people who talk about Tourette Syndrome, the more people who share their stories, the better. Being diagnosed can be daunting,” McNally added. “Newly diagnosed children need to see successful adults sharing and talking about their diagnosis, it will give them hope for the future.“