Madonna was 'rundown,' 'didn't want to take time away from rehearsals' before hospitalization: source (exclusive)
The pop star was preparing to launch her Celebration Tour before she was hospitalized for a "serious bacterial infection," her manager announced last week
Madonna was pushing herself in tour rehearsals before her health scare, sources tell PEOPLE.
Last Wednesday, the Queen of Pop's manager Guy Oseary revealed that Madonna had been hospitalized for a "serious bacterial infection" — just weeks before her hotly anticipated Celebration Tour was slated to launch.
“She ignored some symptoms of illness for quite a while because she thought they would go away. But she didn’t want to take time away from rehearsals," a music source tells PEOPLE. "She was rundown and not feeling 100 percent for a while in anticipation of her tour. She is relentless in her quest to be the best, to wow her fans and to do what others before her have not done.”
A second music source adds: “Madonna has been very busy for a long time and not taking care of herself. She just continues to push herself beyond the limit."
Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty
Madonna in 2022Madonna was set to kick off her tour — which will celebrate her boundary-breaking, 40-year career — in Vancouver on July 15.
"I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for," Madonna said in January, when she announced the tour.
Last week, Oseary revealed on Instagram that “on Saturday June 24, Madonna developed a serious bacterial infection which [led] to a several day stay in the ICU. Her health is improving, however she is still under medical care. A full recovery is expected. At this time we will need to pause all commitments, which includes the tour. We will share more details with you soon as we have them, including a new start date for the tour and for rescheduled shows."
At the time, a source told PEOPLE "she is out of the ICU and now recovering," and by Thursday, a source confirmed "she's back home and feeling better."
Just four days before she was hospitalized, Madonna shared rehearsal photos on Instagram: "The Calm Before The Storm………" she captioned the behind-the-scenes look at her set.
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