The 80-year-old singer, born Richard Penniman, initially didn’t realize he was having a heart attack last week, according to a report by Rolling Stone. “I was coughing, and my right arm was aching,” he told Green. “I told my son, ‘Make the room as cold as ice.’ So he turned the air conditioning on, and I took a baby aspirin. The doctor told me that saved my life. Jesus had something for me. He brought me through.”
Little Richard is now recovering at home with his family.
One of the most popular rock stars of the 1950s, the musician’s hits include Tutti-Frutti, Long Tall Sally and Good Golly, Miss Molly.