In a new episode of ’90’s Dance’, Hila Noorzai (31) visits Des-ray and D-Rock from 2 Brothers on the 4th Floor. The musical duo enjoyed huge success in the 90s and are still on stage to this day. However, D-Rock appears to be walking around with a big secret and shares his story with the presenter and viewers. The rapper has had Parkinson’s for years.
“We thought he had been there”
Although Des-ray and René, aka D-Rock, still enjoy performing together after 30 years, a lot has changed. The duo has been hiding the fact that René is not doing well for more than fifteen years. “When I was 38, I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s,” says the now 54-year-old rapper. “I thought: I’ll never get out of here, but I just kept going. Fighting. To be there for my group.”
The rapper is visibly having a hard time telling his story after all this time. He gets emotional. “It’s difficult, isn’t it,” Des-ray comforts him.
The pair deliberately did not share the truth about René’s health with the public. “The show must go on. We just have to move on. And I don’t want to be the reason that fewer bookings are coming in,” the rapper explains.
“It’s a very big step,” Des-Ray says of their revelation. “It’s also fearful. Like: how will people react?” Although presenter Hila thinks that many people will draw strength from the rapper’s heartbreaking story, he does not seem to completely agree with this. “That’s not what they come for. They come to see 2 Brothers.”
Des-ray looks back on the performance that made René discover that he had Parkinson’s. “He started shaking. At one point we had a performance where he had to sit down. He couldn’t stand anymore.”
The diagnosis was ‘a shock’ for René. The most difficult thing was that he lived all alone in Antwerp during this period. “I had to deal with everything alone. That was very bad. Lonely.”
René even denied for a while that he had the disease. “I’m still so young, you know, I was 38. ‘No man, that’s not possible.’ But it was true.” Although the medication initially worked well, there was also a moment when Des-ray became extremely worried. “His kidneys failed. He then had to go to the hospital. We thought he was there. That’s heartbreaking, to see your buddy lying like that.”
For René, performing is his ‘joy and his life’. That is why the team ensures that he can continue to do this. For example, there is a backup artist behind the scenes, MC Masta, who comes to his aid on stage if things don’t work out.
The rapper has now undergone brain surgery. As a result, René’s brain is connected to a box that helps him ‘regulate’ his neurologists. “It’s a lifesaver, this. I’m glad I’m one of the first to get this.” He sees a bright future for 2 Brothers. “Hopefully for a long time. I think so. I really want to perform with 2 Brothers for a long time.” Yet he also has to be realistic, he admits. “I have Parkinson’s after all. And it is a very strange disease. (…) It can change at any time. But the future looks good, I think.”
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