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Stevie Wonder publicly addresses the crazy theory that he's not actually blind
15 July 2025, 11:50
No, Stevie Wonder is not pretending to be blind.
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The world of pop is packed with wacky conspiracy theories, but among the strangest – and certainly the most offensive – is that Stevie Wonder isn't actually blind.
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Fans who haven't fallen down a YouTube wormhole of quirky ideas will know that yes, Stevie Wonder is blind, and has been since soon after he was born.
He was born six weeks premature, and it's believed the oxygen-heavy atmosphere in the incubators inhibited the growth of his eyes and resulted in detached retinas.
"I was not born blind but shortly after that because of being premature I had then being in the incubator," Stevie told Larry King.
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"I think the retrolental fibroplasia, that's what it's called. And it happens from... having too much oxygen and many kids that were born in the '50s, before the doctor discovered that, you know, there was another way to do it, I became blind."
The conspiracies have continued despite his openness about his condition, in part because of just how well Stevie's adapted to his lack of sight.
“We lived in a building on Wilshire" Shaquille O'Neal told NBA on TNT in 2019.
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"So you park your car under, the valet is down there. I'm already in the building, I'm coming through the lobby.
"The door opens. It’s Stevie Wonder. He comes in, says, 'What’s up, Shaq?' presses the button, gets off on the floor by himself and goes to his room. I went and called every person I knew and told the story."
Stevie is clearly well aware of the suggestion that he can see just fine, and tackled the conspiracy head on when his Love, Light and Song tour reached Blackweir Fields in Cardiff last week (July 9).
"I must say to all of you, something that I was thinking, 'When did I want to let the world know this?'," Stevie said.
"But I wanted to say it right now. You know there have been rumors about me seeing and all that? But seriously, you know the truth."
He added: "Truth is, shortly after my birth, I became blind. Now, that was a blessing because it’s allowed me to see the world in the vision of truth, of sight. See people in the spirit of them, not how they look. Not what colour they are, but what colour is their spirit?"
