Elton John Will Be Ending His ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ Tour By Headlining Glastonbury Festival 2023
Elton John has had a legendary career spanning almost six decades. While he will still perform now and then and make new music, he will no longer be touring after his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour wraps up. The “Tiny Dancer” singer recently revealed that he will be wrapping up his final tour by headlining the 2023 Glastonbury Festival, an honor he hasn’t had until now.
Elton John will be headlining Glastonbury Festival 2023 to end his final tour
Glastonbury Festival is an annual music festival set in Glastonbury, England. Thousands of people gather yearly to listen to many of the most popular artists in the world. While there are many incredible acts, the headliners perform at Pyramid Stage. Last year, some of the artists who performed there were Paul McCartney, Billie Eilish, and Kendrick Lamar.
This year’s festival lineup was recently announced, including Arctic Monkeys, Guns N’ Roses, Lizzo, Lil Nas X, and Elton John. Shockingly, this is Sir Elton’s first time performing there, and he believes it’s the perfect way to end his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour. In an interview with BBC, John spoke more about this special opportunity and why he wants to retire from touring this way.
“This is the first time I’ve been asked to play it…it’s come at the right time,” John shared. “I’m a great believer in serendipity and fate, and this is the most wonderful way to sign off in England.”
John teased some surprises for this performance, saying, “I’ve got guests, and I can’t tell you who they are.”
John says he will still perform occasionally once he retires from touring
Elton John’s tour has lasted a while, as it began before COVID-19 pandemic, but the “Rocket Man” singer still wanted to finish it once it was safe to do so. The tour has more than 300 concerts worldwide, but John has loved every minute.
“The audiences have been amazing, dressing up…some of them have been to 150 shows, 300 shows,” John explained. “They’re treating it as a party, and that lifts my spirit every night. I have to say it’s been better than I could ever have imagined it to be. I’m happy in my personal life and my professional life, everything in my life is so wonderful. So I think that’s the reason why the performances really satisfy me.”
While he says he won’t miss touring, he will still perform every now and then, as “the piano won’t go away forever.” However, he will be more selective about where and when he performs and prefers it to be closer to the U.K.
“It’ll be very sporadic, I really don’t want to tour again,” he admitted. “Doing a theatre thing for a few weeks might be appealing, but honestly, that’s in the dim and distant future. I’m not going back to Vegas. If I do anything, it will be here [in the UK].”
Glastonbury Festival 2023 will take place between June 21, 2023-June 25, 2023.
