Normani has returned to the music industry with the announcement of her latest album, which comes after both of her parents were diagnosed with cancer when she was crafting her debut music project.

The “Waves” artist revealed how her parents, Andrea and Derrick Hamilton, experienced illnesses that affected her music career while working on her upcoming solo album, Dopamine. 

“This is bigger than the music,” the singer told Who What Wear. “It’s bigger than what I’m trying to accomplish. This is life or death. All I wanted to do was be there for them.”

While working on her album, Normani discovered her parents were both diagnosed with cancer. She explained that although she dedicated time to her debut project, the first thing she thought of was “F**k all of this.” Despite her parents having a difficult time, the “Love Lies” singer said her music brought them joy.

“Music got them through the cancer treatments,” Normani said. “I remember being on FaceTime with my mom while she was undergoing chemo and her asking me, ‘How’s the studio today? How’s the music coming?’ As hard as it was for me to not be with them as much as I wanted to, ultimately, pushing through made the circumstances of the last few years feel a bit lighter for my parents.”

The 27-year-old said that her mother received a second breast cancer diagnosis in October 2020. Andrea was diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time when Normani was a little child.

“I was a bit confused and didn’t really comprehend because I was so young,” Normani said in an interview with ET. “I didn’t understand the severity of breast cancer until my mom was getting her head shaved by my dad because her hair was falling out … then we understood what it was. It became real once I saw my mom in a different state.”

Normani added that she learned that nothing is in vain after witnessing her parents undergo cancer treatments.

“It was in those moments with my parents that made me realize that I have an opportunity to make an impact in this lifetime,” she told Who What Wear. “I know everything I’ve been through isn’t in vain. There’s always something that God wants me to see in the season. It’s all in service of making me better for all that he actually has in store for me.”

Normani disclosed that her mother got her last session of radiotherapy in August 2021.

“GLORY!!!!” she tweeted.

Normani disclosed in a recent collaboration with Bose that her father received a cancer diagnosis only a year after her mother battled breast cancer and went through chemotherapy. She has not been as open about updates on her dad’s cancer battle but shared that he is also in high spirits thanks to her music. 

[When my mom was going through chemo], the thing that really kept her going was getting on FaceTime and being like, ‘How are the sessions going?’ she said. “She’s always so eager to hear the new records we’ve been working on,”

“And then a year later, when my dad ended up being diagnosed, he would say mid-treatment, ‘I’m ready for you to take over the world,'” she continued.

Normani