After more than 50 years on the road, Elton John has officially retired from touring.
The renowned artist performed his final tour act at Stockholm’s Tele2 Arena on Saturday, the final stop on his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour.
“I’ve had the most incredible career, beyond words. How fortunate am I to be able to play music for 52 years?” John, 76, told the audience as he finished his concert with “Your Song” and “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.”
“But, you know, if it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you. You bought the singles, albums, CDs, and cassettes, but more importantly, you bought the concert tickets, and you know how much I enjoy performing live.”
After the show, the five-time Grammy winner thanked his fans for their unending support spanning more than five decades.
“My fans have been there for me every step of the way.” They’ve remained with me, they’ve supported me, they’ve been patient, and they’ve been coming to every single event,” he stated in a post-show statement, according to Consequence.
“Tonight has been a beautiful night. I’m still processing everything, and I don’t believe it’ll take a while before I’m finally done touring. I can’t tell you how much I’m going to miss the fans or how much their love has humbled me – it will live on in my heart forever.”
At one point during the event, the “Tiny Dancer” singer received a special message from Chris Martin, who was performing with his band, Coldplay, in Sweden at the same time.
“Elton, we just wanna say, from all of us here, from all the bands and artists that you’ve loved, inspired, and helped, we just love you so much,” Martin, 46, said in part. “We love you tremendously. Happy retirement and we’ll miss you terribly, dude.”
John, who has been traveling since 1970, took to Instagram earlier Saturday to deliver a poignant message before of the highly anticipated event.
“What a journey this tour has been, and now we find ourselves at the end of it,” he wrote. “Tonight is the final night.”
While John is no longer traveling, he and his management have previously announced that fans can expect to see him perform in some way in the coming years.
“It’s essential to distinguish between Elton retiring from touring and Elton not performing his very last public performance for the very last time,” John’s husband and manager, David Furnish, told Billboard last November.
“I know he will not be touring in any capacity. What you’ll see is the prospect of a spectacular one-time event or a short residency in a single place for a limited time.”
Cleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award during the NFL Honors ceremony on Thursday night
Cleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award during the NFL Honors ceremony on Thursday night. The 38-year oId was not signed by any team after becoming a free agent at the end of the 2022 season. Despite multiple teams needing quarterbacks throughout the 2023 season, Flacco did not get a call until later in the year.
Hamlin returned to the field this season, though was often a healthy scratch from Bills games. Still, he managed to pIay 111 defensive snaps, which is quite the achievement for someone who was literally dead for a few minutes last year.
So incredible was Hamlin’s journey that many NFL fans beIieve he should have won the award instead.
NFL Fans Believe Damar Hamlin Should Have Won Comeback Player of the Year Instead of Joe Flacco
While Flacco had a fun story, going from the couch and playing with his kids to carrying the Browns to the playoffs, Hamlin’s story is arguably more inspiring and more deserving for the honor of Comeback PIayer of the Year.
At least, that is what fans from multiple fanbases were saying on sociaI media when the announcement was made:
Leave a Reply