“With absolute sadness, I regret to inform his fans and friends that today my father left his beautiful body to continue his path and creativity in another form of eternal life,” said his daughter. “My mother, I and the whole family are immersed in this pain, so we appreciate your understanding in these difficult times.”

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Verdaguer’s last message on social media, published Thursday night, was for his wife: “I will never get tired of dedicating to you! You are and always will be the thief who stole my heart,” he wrote in Spanish.

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Verdaguer contracted COVID-19 in December and was hospitalized, according to the statement. His publicist in Mexico, Claudia López Ibarra, said he was vaccinated against the coronavirus.

“Yes, he was vaccinated … but the virus attacked him in the U.S. when the delta variant was present,” López Ibarra told The Associated Press in a text message Friday.

There had been speculation about whether the singer had been vaccinated or not given his wife’s previous anti-vaccine statements.

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According to the publicist, Verdaguer frequently traveled to the United States, especially after the birth of Lucca, the eldest son of Ana Victoria, who lives in Los Angeles. The singer performed concerts in the U.S. and had a tour scheduled with Amanda Miguel for this year.

“We deeply regret the loss of #diegoverdaguer, we were together recently when they came to our concert in Los Angeles. A hug for @amandamiguels and her family,” tweeted the Argentine singing duo Pimpinela in Spanish, alongside a group photo.

 

 

Verdaguer was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on April 26, 1951, and debuted as a soloist at the age of 17 with the single “Lejos del amor”, which was followed by others such as “Yo te amo” and “Volveré.”

Since 1980, he had lived in Mexico, a country to which he dedicated his album “Mexicano Hasta Las Pampas,” which was nominated for two Latin Grammys, and its sequel, “Mexicano Hasta Las Pampas 2,” as well as the live album “Mexicanísimos.”

“I can tell you, I am more Mexican than anything,” the artist said in an interview with the AP in 2019. “I love Mexico, I love what Mexico has meant in my life, I love the opportunities that Mexico has given me.”

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Verdaguer met Miguel when she was 18 and he was 24. His daughter Ana Victoria, who is also a singer, was born in 1983.

“Amanda Miguel has been my inspiration since I met her,” Verdaguer told the AP. “I really appreciate everything we’ve done together as a couple, as artists, as individuals.”

In 2019, Verdaguer was recognized by the Mexican Society of Authors and Composers with a special award for his 50-year career. In recent years, Verdaguer made the leap to streaming and accumulated more than 2 million followers on social networks.

“You have to evolve spiritually and understand the meaning of life,” Verdaguer told the AP. “We came to live a divine experience, we came to learn, we came to give ourselves, we came to perfect ourselves, we came to give, we came to help, because giving and helping one feels better.”

No details about Verdaguer’s funeral were released.

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  • Slide 1 of 14: Legendary French fashion designer Manfred Thierry Mugler, known for his dramatic and avant garde designs, died Jan. 23. He was 73. Mugler's death was announced on his official Instagram account. "May his soul Rest In Peace," the statement read. House of Mugler also confirmed the news of his death on their account writing: "A visionary whose imagination as a couturier, perfumer and image-maker empowered people around the world to be bolder and dream bigger everyday."  Born December 21, 1948, in Strasbourg, France, Mugler launched his first fashion collection called "Café de Paris" in 1973. Mugler retired from fashion in 2002, but in more recent years, the designer's iconic looks have been worn by high-profile entertainers including Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian, Cardi B, David Bowie, and Diana Ross. 
  • Slide 2 of 14: Emmy-winning comedian and actor Louie Anderson died Jan. 21, according to his longtime publicist Glenn Schwartz. He was 68.  Anderson appeared on TV in many avenues including "Family Feud" and several late-night talk show appearances. His gender-switching role in FX's "Baskets" won a 2016 Emmy for best supporting actor as he took on the role of Christine Baskets, a mother to twins played by Zach Galifianakis. Anderson received three consecutive Emmy nods for his performance.
  • Slide 3 of 14: Rock superstar Meat Loaf, whose "Bat Out of Hell" album soared among record sales, died Jan. 20 according to a statement from his family. He was 74.  "Bat Out of a Hell," his mega-selling collaboration with songwriter Jim Steinman and producer Todd Rundgren, came out in 1977 and made him one of the most recognizable performers in rock.
  • Slide 4 of 14: Brazilian samba singer Elza Soares died in her Rio de Janeiro home on Jan. 20, family members said on the artist's official Instagram account. She was 91. The family said Soares died of ‘’natural causes'' and did not provide further detail.  Elza Gomes da Conceição was born in June 1930, in a modest Rio de Janeiro household. She became famous for singing samba in the early 1960s, before diversifying to other genres, winning her the title of “singer of the millennium” in a BBC London competition in 1999.
  • Slide 5 of 14: French actor Gaspard Ulliel, known for appearing in Chanel perfume ads as well as film and television roles, died Jan. 19 after a skiing accident in the Alps, according to his agent’s office. He was 37.
  • Slide 6 of 14: André Leon Talley, the visionary former creative director of Vogue magazine, died Jan. 18 at age 73, his literary agent David Vigliano confirmed. The fashion journalist began at the Condé Nast magazine in 1983, serving as fashion news director, creative director and later, editor-at-large. The 6-foot-6 fashion icon wrote two memoirs, "A.L.T.: A Memoir" in 2003 and "The Chiffon Trenches" in 2020, served as a judge over four seasons of "America's Next Top Model" and was the center of the 2017 documentary "The Gospel According to André."
  • Slide 7 of 14: Yvette Mimieux, the '60s movie star who appeared in films such as "Where the Boys Are," "The Time Machine" and "Light in the Piazza," died Jan. 17. She was 80. A family spokesperson said Mimieux died in her sleep of natural causes. She was three times nominated for a Golden Globe, including for her role in the short-lived ABC series "The Most Deadly Game," from Aaron Spelling. Mimieux eventually retired from acting in her late 40s, citing the one-dimensional roles offered to her to play. "I decided I didn't want to have a totally public life," she told The Washington Post.  "You know, there are tribes in Africa who believe that a camera steals a little part of your soul, and in a way I think that's true about living your private life in public," Mimieux added. "It takes something away from your relationships, it cheapens them." 
  • Slide 8 of 14: Pop singer Ronnie Spector, who found fame with the '60s girl group The Ronettes, died Jan. 12 after a brief battle with cancer, according to a family statement. Spector was surrounded by family and "in the arms of her husband, Jonathan."  "Our beloved earth angel, Ronnie, peacefully left this world today," the statement read. "Ronnie lived her life with a twinkle in her eye, a spunky attitude, a wicked sense of humor and a smile on her face." While Spector initially struggled to find solo success after leaving the Ronettes, Spector found commercial success in the '80s with "Take Me Home Tonight," a duet with Eddie Money, and released the rock-inspired "She Talks to Rainbows" EP to critical acclaim in 1999.  "Her joyful sound, playful nature and magical presence will live on in all who knew, heard or saw her," her family wrote.  
  • Slide 9 of 14: Bob Saget, the comedian and star of TV's "Full House" died on Jan. 9, at 65. He was best known for his role as widowed father Danny Tanner in ABC's "Full House."  On TV, Saget played the sweetly neurotic father on ABC's "Full House" from 1987 to 1995 opposite Jesse (John Stamos), Joey (Dave Coulier), along with his TV daughters D.J. (Candace Cameron), Stephanie (Jodie Sweetin) and Michelle (played by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen). But as a stand-up comic, Saget told USA TODAY he preferred "immature taboo humor — good immature taboo humor" while promoting his 2014 memoir, "Dirty Daddy: The Chronicles of a Family Man Turned Filthy Comedian."
  • Slide 10 of 14: James Mtume, a musician and activist who formed the R&B group Mtume, died on Jan. 9, six days after his 76th birthday, his representative Angelo Ellerbee confirmed to USA TODAY. Throughout his career, Mtume collaborated with several jazz giants, including Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, McCoy Tyner, Freddie Hubbard and Sonny Rollins. He even formed his own genre of music — a combination of soul, jazz and funk he called "Sophistifunk" — in the 1970s.  In the 1980s, Mtume formed the R&B group bearing his namesake. The group had five best-selling albums and eleven R&B hits, including the 1982 song "Juicy Fruit."
  • Slide 11 of 14: Dwayne Hickman, who starred as the perpetually besotted high schooler at the center of TV’s “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis,” died Jan. 9 from complications of Parkinson’s disease. At the time of his death, he was surrounded by his family at his Los Angeles home.  The LA native, born May 18, 1934, launched his career at age 6 as an extra in “The Grapes of Wrath,” following in the footsteps of his older brother, child actor Darryl Hickman with early roles in “Captain Eddie” and “The Boy with the Green Hair,” as well as TV’s “The Lone Ranger” and “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.” He studied at Loyola Marymount University, eventually earning his economics degree, then returned to acting as a regular on TV’s “The Bob Cummings Show” as Cummings’ nephew Chuck MacDonald.
  • Slide 12 of 14: Woodstock co-producer and co-founder, Michael Lang, died Jan. 8 at age 77 at New York's Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, his family confirmed. Lang had been battling non-Hodgkin lymphoma. "He was absolutely a historic figure, and also a great guy," a family spokesperson said. "Both of those things go hand in hand." Lang leaves a legacy as an icon for multiple generations of music fans, helping to popularize the modern music festival. 
  • Slide 13 of 14: Sidney Poitier, a trailblazer for Hollywood diversity and a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, died at 94. Poitier died Jan. 6 in the Bahamas, acting director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Bahamas Eugene Torchon-Newry confirmed to the Associated Press.
  • Slide 14 of 14: Nick Colionne, the "ultra-stylish" urban jazz guitarist who gained prominence on the global jazz scene in the early 2000s, died unexpectedly Jan. 1. Colionne was hospitalized Dec. 31 "with some pain" and died early the next morning at Saint Joseph's Hospital in Elgin, Illinois, according to a news release provided to USA TODAY by representative Christine Clark. His age was unknown. "We are devastated at losing Nick," the statement read. "Tributes by Nick's adoring fans and fellow artists around the world tell a story of an extremely talented man who lived life to the fullest and who was clearly loved by everyone. Nick's legacy will live on." 
Slide 1 of 14: Legendary French fashion designer Manfred Thierry Mugler, known for his dramatic and avant garde designs, died Jan. 23. He was 73. Mugler’s death was announced on his official Instagram account. “May his soul Rest In Peace,” the statement read. House of Mugler also confirmed the news of his death on their account writing: “A visionary whose imagination as a couturier, perfumer and image-maker empowered people around the world to be bolder and dream bigger everyday.”  Born December 21, 1948, in Strasbourg, France, Mugler launched his first fashion collection called “Café de Paris” in 1973. Mugler retired from fashion in 2002, but in more recent years, the designer’s iconic looks have been worn by high-profile entertainers including Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian, Cardi B, David Bowie, and Diana Ross.

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1/14 SLIDES © BRITTA PEDERSEN, DPA/AFP via Getty Images

Legendary French fashion designer Manfred Thierry Mugler, known for his dramatic and avant garde designs, died Jan. 23. He was 73. Mugler’s death was announced on his official Instagram account. “May his soul Rest In Peace,” the statement read. House of Mugler also confirmed the news of his death on their account writing: “A visionary whose imagination as a couturier, perfumer and image-maker empowered people around the world to be bolder and dream bigger everyday.”

Born December 21, 1948, in Strasbourg, France, Mugler launched his first fashion collection called “Café de Paris” in 1973. Mugler retired from fashion in 2002, but in more recent years, the designer’s iconic looks have been worn by high-profile entertainers including Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian, Cardi B, David Bowie, and Diana Ross.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Argentine singer Diego Verdaguer dies of COVID-19 complications at 70

Argentine singer Diego Verdaguer dies of COVID-19 complications at 70 (msn.com)