Matthew Sweet is raising healthcare funds after being hospitalized due to a debilitating stroke on October 12 while on tour in Toronto supporting Hanson. With the proper care, estimated to cost $250,000, he is expected to make a full recovery, Catherine Lyons, his manager, wrote on GoFundMe. As of October 23, the tally stands at $167,000.
Lyons elaborated that Sweet “has been unexpectedly and tragically forced off the road and onto a long, uncertain path to recovery.” She continued, “We are asking for financial help in this difficult time from his family, friends, and fans. Without insurance or touring income, Matthew faces an enormous financial burden. The doctors and hospital care in Toronto were instrumental in saving Matthew’s life, but health care is not free for Americans in Canada. He must now be flown back to the States on an ambulance transport plane with medical staff on board, to a specialized rehabilitation center, where he will receive around-the-clock care and therapy for six weeks. He will then require months of treatment and rehabilitation that we hope will lead to a full recovery. Needless to say, the costs for all of this treatment will be overwhelming.”
Sweet rose to prominence in the 1980s Athens, Georgia, scene, with the landmark power-pop albums Girlfriend and Altered Beast. His latest release is the 2021 LP Catspaw.