'I've had enough applause, I want to be with my boys': Elton John, 74, reveals he's looking forward to retiring and calls Ed Sheeran a 'f*****g big mouth' for letting their festive duet secret out
Elton John has revealed he's looking forward to retiring after his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour so he can spend time with his two sons, Zachary, 10, and Elijah, eight.
The singer, 74, is due to finish his touring in 2023 and spoke of why he feels the time is right to hand up his microphone in an interview with NME.
Gracing The Big Read cover, Elton said he has had enough of jetting across the world and, during the interview, jokingly called Ed Sheeran a 'f*****g big mouth' for letting the secret of their Christmas song out earlier this month.
Speaking about his world tour, Elton said: 'At the moment I finish supposedly in 2023, in the summer, by which time I'll be 76 – and that's it, baby. I can't wait to do it and have a great time, and I can't wait to finish and say, 'No more – I've had enough.'
'I will do records and I'll do my radio show, but as far as schlepping and doing shows? I've had enough applause. I wanna be with my family. I wanna be with my boys.
'I'll still be creative, but I don't want to spend the rest of my life flying here, flying there. I can't do any more than I've done now and save for the odd charity thing that may come up, that's it for me.'
Last month, Elton postponed the European and UK leg of his tour until 2023, after suffering a fall.
The music legend revealed he was in 'considerable pain' after injuring his hip and has been advised to have an operation 'as soon as possible'.
As a result, the 2021 dates will now be delayed by two years, while Elton focuses on making a full recovery.
But the singer has been keeping busy and spoke about how Ed had spilled the beans about their Christmas duet in an interview recently.
Speaking about his upcoming festive track with long-term friend Ed, he told the magazine: 'Yeah, he let the cat out of the bag didn't he?'
'I was sworn to secrecy and then big mouth f*****g Sheeran goes to the Netherlands! It's supposed to come out – we haven't finished it yet, so there's still work to be done.'
He then joked about battling it out for the number one Christmas spot with graphic designer and YouTuber Mark Ian Hoyle, otherwise known as LadBaby.
'We've got the sausage roll man to deal with, haven't we? We've got LadBaby to deal with! Once we bump him off, we might have a clear path to a hit record. He seems to have the monopoly on Christmas records. And good for him!'
The Rocketman songster, who often speaks candidly about being an entertainer in the LGBTQ+ community, also spoke to the magazine about fellow LGBTQ+ star Lil Nas X, who he called 'a breath of fresh air'.
Despite the hip-hop artist recently responding to criticisms over his 'satanic' sneakers in the Montero (Call Me By Your Name) music video, Elton John revealed the star has his full support.
'In a culture of hip-hop where it can be very homophobic, suddenly he was doing [the songs] Montero and Industry Baby. You look at the videos and go, 'f*****g hell! This is unbelievable!' I just loved every second of it because it takes balls of steel, as I've said to him.
'I just admire him so much - he was a breath of fresh air coming in.'
The unlikely duo teamed up for the September Uber Eats campaign called Tonight I'll Be Eating.
Elton and Lil Nas, 22 - real name Montero Lamar Hill - were some of the latest in a slew of stars to appear in an advert for the online food ordering and delivery platform.
Former names that have led campaigns for the company include Kim Kardashian, Simone Biles and Patrick Stewart.