On June 19, 2020, comedian D.L. Hughley was hospitalized after he collapsed onstage at Zanies Comedy Club in Nashville, Tennessee, Variety reported. The actor — who was supposed to perform at the club for two more shows following the incident, per Us Weekly — “was suffering from exhaustion after all the week’s work and travel,” his representative told Us Weekly the next day.
Hughley “was kept overnight at the hospital for tests under doctor’s orders,” the representative added. “He is awake and feeling better, and wishes to thank everyone for the very kind prayer and thoughts.”
Unfortunately, Hughley’s life was about to change even more. “When I came [to the hospital], I was being treated for extreme exhaustion and dehydration, which I was very dehydrated, but it turned out they ran a battery of tests, and I also tested positive for COVID-19, which blew me away,” the actor explained in a video via Twitter on June 20, 2020.
Keep reading to find out more about Hughley and how the coronavirus pandemic has affected his life, both before and after his own diagnosis.
D.L. Hughley showed no coronavirus symptoms
D.L. Hughley was shocked when he tested positive for coronavirus after collapsing onstage at a comedy show. “I was what they call asymptomatic,” he explained in a video on Twitter. “I didn’t have flu-like symptoms, I didn’t have shortness of breath, I didn’t have difficulty breathing, I didn’t have a cough, I didn’t have a low-grade fever.”
The comedian and actor told his followers that he still doesn’t have a fever or “loss of smell or taste,” adding, “apparently, I just lost consciousness.”
“So, in addition to all the other stuff you have to look out for, if your a** pass out in a middle of a show on stage, you probably need to get tested,” he joked. “I am going back to my hotel room to quarantine for 14 days and well, thank you for your prayers and your well-wishes. A few more of them wouldn’t hurt, so hopefully, I won’t develop symptoms.”
Fortunately, it seems Hughley still has his sense of humor despite the bleak diagnosis. “Maybe this is as bad as it gets, and I am just [going to] pass out all over and over again or not,” he quipped. “But thank you, I appreciate your thoughts and prayers, and they did not go unnoticed or unfelt. Thank you.”
Even before he fell sick, Hughley was personally affected by the pandemic.
D.L. Hughley has lost '70 percent of his income'
Celebrities haven’t been immune to the financial effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Shortly before D.L. Hughley was diagnosed with COVID-19, the comedian revealed “70 percent of [his] income went away” due to closures and cancellations.
“70 percent of my income,” Hughley said during an interview with VladTV in mid-June 2020. “So even now when you’re talking about going back and you’re restructuring deals — 50 percent capacity or 25 percent capacity — the deals aren’t what they were.” Hughley also noted that it was the first time in his career that he hadn’t “touched a microphone in three months.”
However, the Dancing With the Stars alum thinks stand-up comedy will stand the test of time. “Stand-up can survive two world wars, famine, floods, fires — I don’t think that everybody is going to survive, that would be a lot — but I think the art form will [and] how people digest it,” he explained. “That might be a different thing.”
Inside D.L. Hughley's quarantine life
Before D.L. Hughley was hospitalized and diagnosed with coronavirus on June 19, 2020, the Hollywood star spoke out about what his life was like in quarantine, revealing that there were some benefits to staying inside. “I have been spending a lot of time with my woman,” Hughley said about his wife, LaDonna Hughley, with whom he shares three children. “A lot of time with my kids — daughters Ryan and Tyler and son Kyle — but I am so ready to get out of here. I mean, I love them,” he said on Sway in the Morning in May 2020.
Meanwhile, Hughley — who is used to being on the road and performing for his fans — had adjusted to the new normal rather quickly. “I am doing better than I thought I would,” he dished on The Wendy Williams Show in May 2020. “I actually am not going as crazy as I thought I would.”
We’re wishing Hughley a speedy recovery during this time.
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