Jackson Browne Tests Positive for Coronavirus
![Jackson Browne Confirms He Has Tested Positive For Coronavirus](https://i0.wp.com/seacoastoldies.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jackson-Browne.jpg?resize=780%2C470&ssl=1)
Jackson Browne was suspicious that something was not right when he started feeling ill in recent weeks. βAs soon as I had a small cough and a temperature, I tested [for COVID-19],β he says. The Rock Hall of Fame inductee tells Rolling Stone that he has tested positive for the coronavirus and is currently recuperating at his Los Angeles home. βMy symptoms are really pretty mild, so I donβt require any kind of medication and certainly not hospitalization or anything like that,β he adds.
The 71-year-old musician isnβt sure where he got it, but he suspected his recent trip to New York for the annual Love Rocks NYC benefit, which also featured Cyndi Lauper, Dave Matthews, Warren Haynes, Susan Tedeschi, and Derek Trucks, may have been the source. βSo many people that have it arenβt going to be tested,β he says. βThey donβt have symptoms, but they might have it and might be able to pass it on. Thatβs what younger readers need to understand: They need to take part in the global response to stop the spread. That means not going anywhere, not getting into contact with anybody, not seeing anybody.β
Browne spoke with Rolling Stone about the pandemic, how heβs handling his time in quarantine, and what advice he has for others who arenβt taking it seriously.
How are you feeling?
The prognosis for what to do once you test positive is pretty much the same as if you donβt test positive, which is to stay put. And stay self-quarantined. Donβt expose anybody. Donβt go anywhere.
I quarantined immediately upon feeling sick. It was before the mandatory quarantine orders were issued, because you donβt know if you had it or not. Iβm in the middle of trying to call everyone I know to discuss with them how they are feeling and whether or not they have symptoms. You have to assume you have it. You need to assume that you in some way could very easily pass it to someone else.
The other thing is if you test positive, you just get over it if your body can handle it. If you contract it and your body fights it off, youβll have the antibodies and youβll start contributing to the herd immunity. The idea that everyone is going to eventually wind up having these antibodies in common is mysterious to me. Itβs obvious that the one thing you can do to make a difference in everyoneβs chances is to quarantine yourself.
There seem to be a lot of younger people that arenβt afraid of getting it.
I think what young people need to know everywhere [is] they may be less likely, but they have to treat it. They can spread this disease by not taking it seriously. They can spread it to somebody by presuming they wonβt have any adverse effects themselves, and they can therefore keep partying and going where they want to go. Itβs just not true. They have to understand that everybody is part of the response to this.
I hope that nobody has got it bad. You just donβt know whoβs got a strong immune system and who doesnβt. I was told today by my doctor thereβs a 19-year-old on a ventilator in Santa Monica. Thereβs no guarantee that because youβre young, youβre not going to be affected by this. The thing we should all be very aware of is by traveling around the city and moving this germ from place to place, inadvertently, you are risking the lives of everybody, including the most vulnerable, people who have asthma or people who are really old.
How long have you been home for?
Itβs about 10 days. Itβs not that long, but it feels like forever [laughs]. It seems like a long time. Iβm presuming I got this flying back and forth to New York to do [the] Love Rocks show at the Beacon. And now it turns out that several people who were at that show have tested positive. Iβm going to try and get in touch with everybody and keep talking with them.
I feel lucky that Iβm not really badly affected. I guess Iβve got a really strong immune system. Thereβs so much we donβt know. The one thing you can do is not go anywhere, not show up anywhere. Now, I wish I hadnβt gone to New York and done this benefit. I think to myself, βHow much simpler would it have been had I just called in and said, βNo, Iβm not going to travel on a cross-country flight and spend two days in New York with all these people that are singing all over the country.’β
You couldnβt have known that.
I didnβt know it then. There was already a question of being careful and saying, βIβll bump elbows and not shake hands and wonβt hug anybody. I wonβt behave like that at this show.β But still, youβre in close quarters and youβre breathing the same air. They are swabbing the mics, but somebody in the crew has it. For all I know, he got it from me. I could have got it from the crew member that has it or he could have got it from me. I donβt know. I traveled on an airplane to get there.
How are you keeping yourself occupied at home?
Well, Iβm having a lot of really great conversations with friends of mine who Iβve been too busy to catch up with in a long time. Thereβs that. Iβm trying to keep track of everyone in my family and all my friends. When you calm down and start thinking about other people and their vulnerabilities β¦ I know people all over the place that normally Iβm too busy to keep track of. But now Iβm able to call and see how theyβre doing.
Iβm listening to music. Iβm watching some shows. Iβm spending a lot of time reading all these op-eds. Thereβs a bunch of medical bulletins and stories in The New York Times. When you called earlier, I was listening to the press conference with Governor Cuomo. Itβs all really good, important information.
I think you testing positive will definitely help people take this more seriously.
Itβs important for us all to be pretty forthcoming about what weβre going through. Our experiences will be helpful for others to know. I donβt think my case is that important, but it might be helpful to know that some people donβt get this really bad. The idea that we can contribute to the overall herd immunity. You get over this as quickly as you can and be available to help others.
via Rolling Stone