On Apr 7, 2020 in a compelling interview, well-known actress Rita Wilson got very real on The Kelly Clarkson Show and told us her list of things she would want her husband, well-known actor Tom Hanks, to do if she was to pass away first. The couple has been diagnosed with the Coronavirus since Mar. 11 of 2020, but Wilson told the viewers of the show that the conversation had happened before they were diagnosed. She explained to Clarkson that during her battle with cancer 5 years ago, it led to Wilson and her husband having very serious discussions about how she wanted him and their two kids to mourn her and handle the arrangements if she were to die.
The first request was simple, “One is that I want you to be super sad for a really long time,” Wilson shared as the audience laughed. She continued with the second request saying, “The second thing was that I wanted a party.” Wilson continued and mentioned, “I wanted to have a celebration and I wanted to have a lot of singing and dancing and people telling stories and to feel like that was being celebrated.”
This conversation between the loving couple led to Wilson co-writing her own song with Liz Rose and Kristian Bush named “Throw Me a Party” which was featured on her 2019 album Halfway to Home. The lyrics on the track speak on the talk she had with Hanks and sings, “So when I’m gone throw me a party/You should dance as if I was there/Don’t be sad or be broken-hearted/Just send your voices up in the air,” as the upbeat tune plays on.
Further into the interview, Wilson made a point to mention that in some ways her cancer diagnosis was a blessing and that it led her to live life to the fullest and to live every moment like it was the very last one. “We don’t know what tomorrow brings,” Wilson continued. “We have to be able to live and go out today going, ‘Wow, OK. I did it. I did everything that I wanted to do. I lived the life that I wanted to live today.’”
Rita Wilson and Tom Hanks both tested positive for COVID-19 last month in Australia, where Hanks was filming a biopic of Elvis Presley directed by Baz Lurhmann. The couple went into quarantine in Australia for the duration of their illness and have since returned to Los Angeles. Wilson, after being released from the hospital, has now teamed up with Hip-Hop trio Naughty By Nature to create a remix of their 1993 hit Hip Hop Hooray album that will donate funds to COVID-19 relief efforts. Specifically, the funds have been said to go to those in the music industry who have lost work due to the growing pandemic. Wilson also hosted the Kenny Rogers: Benefit for MusiCares on Wednesday, Apr 8, whose proceeds also went towards the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund.
To see the whole interview during The Kelly Clarkson show click here.
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