WEBVTT

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Um, I want to paint a picture for you today.

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Okay. Imagine you were standing right in the

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middle of Central Park. Oh, I like where this

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is going. Right. It is the fall of 1980. The

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energy in the air is just, it's absolutely electric.

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You are surrounded by this massive sea of people.

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Yeah. An estimated 400 ,000 fans packed onto

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the Great Lawn. Exactly. 400 ,000. And they are

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all gathered there to see one of the most culturally

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dominant forces on the planet. I mean, this is

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an artist who, over the course of his life, will

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sell more than 300 million records. Which is

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a staggering number to even try and wrap your

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head around. It really is. And he'll eventually

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become the 19th person in human history to achieve

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EGOTY status, you know, sweeping the Emmys, the

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Grammys, Oscars, Tonys. He is a literal living

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legend. A titan of the industry. Right. So the

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crowd is roaring. They're waiting for this musical

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genius to take the stage. And when he finally

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does... What is he wearing? What is his grand

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sartorial statement to half a million adoring

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New Yorkers? He comes out dressed in a giant,

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cumbersome, incredibly ridiculous Donald Duck

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costume. complete with the bill and the tail.

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It is so absurd. It's one of the most delightfully

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surreal images in the history of rock and roll.

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And honestly, it is the perfect visual metaphor

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for the man we are talking about today. It really

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is. Because you have this juxtaposition, right?

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The staggering world historic musical genius

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wrapped inside the most absurd, colorful, cartoonish

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exterior imaginable. Exactly. And that contrast

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is exactly our mission on this deep dive today.

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We aren't here to just you know, read you a Wikipedia

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page or rattle off a list of chart positions.

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Right, anyone can look that up. Exactly. We're

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going on a deep dive to uncover the hidden, often

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contradictory mechanics of a career that has

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spanned over six decades. We really want to understand

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how a shy, incredibly anxious, classically trained

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kid from a highly restrictive household somehow

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turns into a global icon pounding the piano in

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a duck suit. Yeah, the journey from point A to

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point B is wild. And we are going to explore

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how answering a random, almost blind date -style

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newspaper ad led to a 50 -year songwriting partnership

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that supposedly never had a single argument.

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Which, honestly, in the music industry might

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be the single most unbelievable fact of all.

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Truly. My role today is to really dig into that.

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I want to try and connect these wild, larger

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-than -life anecdotes to the broader psychological

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and cultural picture. We want to explore not

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just what this artist did, but why it happened

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the way it did and why his journey actually matters

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to you. And I am here to make sure we stay completely

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out of the dense musical jargon. Thank goodness

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for that. Yeah, we're going to keep this approachable.

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We're going to keep it moving, and we are going

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to have some fun. OK, let's unpack this. Before

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the knighthood, for the massive Oscar parties,

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before the glasses that lit up with his name,

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we have to travel back in time. Way back. We

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are going back to post -war Britain. Specifically,

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a council house in Penner, Middlesex in the early

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1950s. Right. And for our global listeners, it's

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important to understand what a council house

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implies in the UK. Yeah, set the scene for us.

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It is public housing. We are talking about modest

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working class beginnings, often with tight quarters

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and thin walls. In 1947, a boy named Reginald

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Kenneth Dwight is born into this environment.

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And if you want to understand the flamboyant

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superstar he later becomes, you absolutely have

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to understand the pressure cooker that was Reggie

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Dwight's childhood. Pressure cooker seems like

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the perfect term. The picture the sources paint

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of his family life is. Um, it's incredibly tense.

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Extremely tense. He was raised by his father,

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Stanley, and his mother, Sheila. Stanley was

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actually a trumpet player for the Royal Air Force.

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Which you would think is a good thing. You'd

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think a professional musician would be thrilled

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to have an incredibly musically gifted son. But

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paradoxically, Stanley wanted Reginald to go

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into a very conventional, secure career. He kept

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pushing him toward banking, right? Yes, banking.

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Wait, really? A literal trumpet player is telling

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his kid, no, put down— the sheet music go be

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a banker that has to mess with the kids head.

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It absolutely did. The household was strict and

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his parents had vehement explosive arguments.

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Stanley was largely disapproving of Reginald

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and he was often physically absent due to his

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military postings. That sounds incredibly isolating.

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It was but even amidst all this domestic tension

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all this arguing and rigidity there was this

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absurd undeniable natural talent bubbling up

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in young Reggie. And when we say absurd we mean

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prodigy level absurd. I read that when he was

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just a little boy, within a year of simply messing

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around on his grandmother's piano, he was able

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to pick out the melody to the skater's waltz.

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Just by listening to it. Just entirely by ear.

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That auditory processing ability is something

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you simply cannot teach, and it only compounded

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as he grew. By the time he was 11 years old,

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he won a junior scholarship to the Royal Academy

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of Music in London. Which is no small feat. No,

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it is one of the most prestigious musical institutions

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in the world. And there's a specific anecdote

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from his time there that really illustrates his

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terrifying level of talent. I love this story.

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One of his instructors recalled a moment where

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he asked Reginald to play back a four page piece

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by Handel. And keep in mind, a four page classical

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piece is a massive amount of complex musical

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data. Exactly. It's not just a melody. It is

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the underlying harmonic structure, the rhythm,

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the dynamics. The instructor played it once,

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just once. Unbelievable. Reginald sat down and

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played it back flawlessly. The instructor later

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described him doing it like a gramophone record.

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Oh. It was essentially a photographic memory,

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but for sound. OK, so he's a Mozart -level prodigy.

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You would just assume he's locked in a room practicing

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scales for eight hours a day, right? driven by

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this strict father in this prestigious academy.

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That is the logical assumption, but no. The sources

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describe him as a bit of a slacker during this

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period. Really? Yeah. He openly admitted later

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that he resented going to the academy. He would

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literally skip his Saturday classes just to ride

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around aimlessly on the London Underground. Just

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ride in the tube instead of going to class. Exactly.

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He was scraping through his grades without even

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bothering to practice. Which is infuriating for

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any of us who had to take piano lessons and struggled

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with chopsticks, but it points to a really interesting

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clash of cultures in his life. at that moment.

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It really does. What's fascinating here is the

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deep duality of his musical education. Tell me

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more about that. On one hand, you have the highly

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rigid, heavily structured, traditional classical

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environment of the Royal Academy. It's all about

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playing the notes exactly as written on the page.

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Right, very disciplined. But on the other hand,

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you have his intuitive, highly rebellious nature.

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At home, his parents were keen record buyers.

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So while he's being steeped in Bach and Chopin

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at school, at home he is listening to Elvis Presley,

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Bill Haley, and most importantly, Little Richard

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and Jerry Lewis. Oh, you can completely see the

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through line there. Little Richard pounding the

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keys, standing up, screaming into the microphone.

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It's the exact antithesis of the Royal Academy.

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Precisely. He is absorbing this wild, pounding,

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sweat -drenched rock and roll entirely by ear.

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learning two completely different languages of

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music simultaneously. And while he's absorbing

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all this, the domestic situation finally fractures.

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When Reginald is 14, his parents divorce, his

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mom eventually marries a local painter named

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Fred Fairbrother, and Reggie affectionately calls

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him Durf, which is just Fred spelled backwards.

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That's a great detail. And this is a huge turning

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point, isn't it? Because Durf and his mom actually

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support his musical ambitions. They don't just

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support him in theory, they actively facilitate

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his career. They help him get a gig playing piano

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at a nearby pub called the Northwood Hills Hotel

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when he is only 15 years old. I love this image

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so much. You have a 15 -year -old Reggie Dwight

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playing Thursday to Sunday nights at a local

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English pub pounding out covers of Ray Charles

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and Jim Reeves. It's a great visual. But here's

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the best detail. He's wearing horn -rimmed glasses

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while he plays. but he doesn't actually need

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them. Right. He had perfect 2020 vision as a

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teenager. He is wearing them specifically to

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imitate his idol, Buddy Holly. Which is incredibly

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revealing. He's already trying on different personas.

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He is literally putting on a mask. Those non

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-prescription glasses were the very first step

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in creating a character that was larger, braver,

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and much more extroverted than the shy, anxious

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boy from the council house in Pinner. That makes

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total sense. If we look at that deeply, it raises

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a compelling point of speculation. You have this

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tense, restrictive childhood with a disapproving

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father pushing him toward banking. Then you have

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this incredible release valve of pub performing

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nurtured by a supportive stepfather. Right. When

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this artist later emerges with the most outrageous,

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flamboyant stage personas imaginable. The duck

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suits, the Statue of Liberty costumes, you have

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to ask, was the sheer outrageousness of his later

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career a direct delayed rebellion against the

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restrictive high pressure environment of Reginald

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White? I mean, he's basically said as much, hasn't

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he? He later stated that the wild costumes were

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his way of finally letting go after that restrictive

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childhood. He couldn't be wild at home. He couldn't

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be wild at the Royal Academy. So he saved all

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that pent -up wildness for the stage. Exactly.

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The stage became his safe space to be entirely

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uninhibited. But raw talent and a desire to rebel

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are only part of the equation. You need the songs.

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You need a vehicle for that talent. Right. How

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does the pub player, Reggie Gwight, actually

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transform into the global superstar? Because

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you can play the best Ray Charles cover in the

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world, but that doesn't sell 300 million records.

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It does not. That brings us to the origin of

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not just his legendary stage name, but his ultimate

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creative partnership. The major turning point

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happens in 1967. Reginald is out of school. By

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day, he is working a completely unglamorous job

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running errands for a music publishing company.

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Paying his dues. Exactly. By night, he is playing

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in a blues band called Bluesology. He is desperately

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looking for a way to break out as a songwriter.

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So he answers an advertisement in the British

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music paper, the New Musical Express. OK, let

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me jump in real quick. For those who might not

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know the industry terms, an AANR manager stands

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for artist in repertoire. Basically, it's the

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person at a record label whose entire job is

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to scout new talent and oversee the artistic

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development. So answering this ad is Reggie's

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Hail Mary Pass to get noticed by the industry.

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The ad was placed by Ray Williams, who was an

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A &R manager for Liberty Records. Exactly. So

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Reginald goes into the audition, but he has a

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problem. He can write incredible melodies, but

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he admits he is terrible at writing lyrics. You

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just can't do the words. Right. So Ray Williams,

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the A &R guy, just reaches onto his desk, grabs

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an unopened envelope of lyrics that had been

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mailed in by someone else, and hands it to Reginald.

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He says, here, see what you can do with these.

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And the person who mailed in that envelope, another

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totally unknown kid who would answer the exact

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same newspaper ad, a lyricist named Bernie Taupin.

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The butterfly effect of that single random unopened

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envelope is absolutely staggering. It's crazy

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to think about. Reginald takes the lyrics home,

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writes music to them, sends the tape to Taupen,

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and they begin a partnership that is still going

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strong today. They didn't even meet in person

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right away. They started their collaboration

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entirely through the mail. It is the ultimate

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musical blind date. And it's right around this

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time, about six months after that fateful meeting,

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that Reginald Dwight decides he needs a name

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that sounds like a rock star. Reggie Dwight just

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wasn't going to cut it. No. So he takes the names

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of two of his bandmates in bluesology. He takes

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Elton from the saxophonist Elton Dean and John

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from the vocalist Long John Baldry. he becomes

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Elton John. And he actually legally changed his

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name to Elton Hercules John a few years later

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in 1972. And I always assumed Hercules was some

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grand statement about mythological strength,

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you know, maybe reflection of his growing ego,

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but no. No, not at all. He took the name Hercules

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from a horse in the British sitcom Steptoe and

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Son. Yeah. He was just a massive fan of this

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gritty, working -class television comedy. I think

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that detail is brilliant because it highlights

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his innate sense of humor and his deep affection

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for British pop culture. Even as he was becoming

00:12:34.799 --> 00:12:37.899
this glamorous, untouchable superstar, he was

00:12:37.899 --> 00:12:40.519
anchoring his legal name to a gag from a local

00:12:40.519 --> 00:12:43.100
sitcom. That's so true. It shows he never completely

00:12:43.100 --> 00:12:45.370
severed ties with his roots. That's a really

00:12:45.370 --> 00:12:47.269
great point. But let's get back to the partnership

00:12:47.269 --> 00:12:49.210
with Bernie Taupin, because this is where the

00:12:49.210 --> 00:12:51.789
story gets really, really weird. We know they

00:12:51.789 --> 00:12:53.610
wrote some of the greatest songs of the 20th

00:12:53.610 --> 00:12:57.460
century, but it's how they wrote them. that is

00:12:57.460 --> 00:12:59.580
so mind -blowing. What's fascinating here is

00:12:59.580 --> 00:13:02.120
the unique mechanics of their collaborative process.

00:13:02.559 --> 00:13:05.960
It defies almost every single convention of songwriting

00:13:05.960 --> 00:13:08.100
you can think of. Right, because when I picture

00:13:08.100 --> 00:13:11.539
legendary songwriting duos, Lennon and McCartney,

00:13:11.980 --> 00:13:15.120
Jagger and Richards, I picture them huddled over

00:13:15.120 --> 00:13:18.139
a single piano in a smoky room. Yeah, fighting

00:13:18.139 --> 00:13:20.600
over a melody. Exactly. Arguing over a chord

00:13:20.600 --> 00:13:22.740
change, hashing out the lyrics line by line,

00:13:23.139 --> 00:13:26.279
intensely collaborating in real time. But Elton

00:13:26.279 --> 00:13:29.039
and Bernie, they are literally never in the same

00:13:29.039 --> 00:13:31.639
room when they write. Never. The process, as

00:13:31.639 --> 00:13:34.100
detailed extensively in our sources, is incredibly

00:13:34.100 --> 00:13:36.480
segmented. Think of it less like a traditional

00:13:36.480 --> 00:13:38.700
kitchen where two chefs are bumping elbows and

00:13:38.700 --> 00:13:41.360
fighting over the seasoning, and more like a

00:13:41.360 --> 00:13:43.779
highly efficient, perfectly oiled assembly line.

00:13:43.879 --> 00:13:47.159
An assembly line of hits. Exactly. Bernie Taupin

00:13:47.159 --> 00:13:49.860
writes a batch of lyrics entirely on his own.

00:13:50.360 --> 00:13:53.500
He writes incredibly fast, often finishing a

00:13:53.500 --> 00:13:56.340
complete lyric in under an hour. Wow. He then

00:13:56.340 --> 00:13:58.860
hands those lyrics to Elton. Elton goes into

00:13:58.860 --> 00:14:01.820
a room, sits at the piano completely alone, looks

00:14:01.820 --> 00:14:04.019
at the words and writes the music in about 30

00:14:04.019 --> 00:14:06.539
minutes. 30 minutes? That is insane. And if he

00:14:06.539 --> 00:14:08.139
can't come up with something within that half

00:14:08.139 --> 00:14:10.620
hour window, he doesn't agonize over it. He doesn't

00:14:10.620 --> 00:14:13.019
go back to Bernie and ask him to change a verse

00:14:13.019 --> 00:14:15.779
or tweak a chorus. What does he do? He physically

00:14:15.779 --> 00:14:18.679
throws the lyrics in the bin and moves on to

00:14:18.679 --> 00:14:20.679
the next sheet of paper. Wait, I have to push

00:14:20.679 --> 00:14:23.860
back on this. You're telling me that for 50 years,

00:14:24.279 --> 00:14:26.460
with hundreds of millions of dollars on the line,

00:14:26.860 --> 00:14:29.000
massive egos, the pressure of record labels,

00:14:29.360 --> 00:14:32.440
they never once argued about a song. No passive

00:14:32.440 --> 00:14:35.259
aggressive notes, no studio blow ups. According

00:14:35.259 --> 00:14:38.460
to both of them, no. As Elton stated in a 2017

00:14:38.460 --> 00:14:40.639
interview, they have never had a professional

00:14:40.639 --> 00:14:43.320
or personal argument in over 50 years of collaboration.

00:14:43.539 --> 00:14:46.519
That is just baffling to me. And when you analyze

00:14:46.519 --> 00:14:50.340
their process, you understand why. By completely

00:14:50.340 --> 00:14:52.799
separating the lyric writing from the music writing,

00:14:53.419 --> 00:14:58.009
they effectively removed ego and immediate creative

00:14:58.009 --> 00:15:01.590
friction from the equation. Ah, I see. Bernie

00:15:01.590 --> 00:15:04.769
has total undisputed autonomy over the words.

00:15:05.529 --> 00:15:08.370
Elton has total undisputed autonomy over the

00:15:08.370 --> 00:15:11.129
music. They never step on each other's toes because

00:15:11.129 --> 00:15:13.190
they are never standing in the same room. I want

00:15:13.190 --> 00:15:15.730
you, the listener, to just think about that for

00:15:15.730 --> 00:15:18.429
a second. Think about any group project you've

00:15:18.429 --> 00:15:21.789
ever been part of at school or at work. Now imagine

00:15:21.789 --> 00:15:25.129
doing that exact project for 50 years under the

00:15:25.129 --> 00:15:27.710
intense scrutiny of the global media and never

00:15:27.710 --> 00:15:30.610
having a single argument. It's unheard of. It's

00:15:30.610 --> 00:15:32.629
a complete anomaly in human behavior, let alone

00:15:32.629 --> 00:15:34.710
in the music industry. It invites some really

00:15:34.710 --> 00:15:37.110
interesting speculation, too. Would this partnership

00:15:37.110 --> 00:15:39.289
have survived if they had been forced into that

00:15:39.289 --> 00:15:42.049
traditional model? Probably not. If an A &R executive

00:15:42.049 --> 00:15:44.169
had locked them in a studio and said, OK, boys,

00:15:44.549 --> 00:15:46.269
jam together until you have a hit, would they

00:15:46.269 --> 00:15:48.179
have killed each other? Almost certainly. The

00:15:48.179 --> 00:15:50.620
volatility of the music business tears bands

00:15:50.620 --> 00:15:53.240
apart every single day over the smallest creative

00:15:53.240 --> 00:15:56.080
differences. By giving each other that absolute

00:15:56.080 --> 00:15:59.519
freedom and distance, they created an impenetrable,

00:15:59.840 --> 00:16:02.659
argument -free workflow. And man did that workflow

00:16:02.659 --> 00:16:05.220
produce results. Although it wasn't instant magic.

00:16:05.639 --> 00:16:08.759
In 1968, they started out as staff songwriters.

00:16:08.889 --> 00:16:12.149
for DJM Records. Right. They were basically functioning

00:16:12.149 --> 00:16:14.750
as a factory churning out easy listening tunes

00:16:14.750 --> 00:16:17.289
for other artists. They even wrote a song for

00:16:17.289 --> 00:16:20.230
the Scottish singer Lulu called I Can't Go On

00:16:20.230 --> 00:16:22.789
Living Without You. It was submitted to be the

00:16:22.789 --> 00:16:25.850
UK entry for the Eurovision Song Contest in 1969.

00:16:26.090 --> 00:16:28.509
I love this piece of trivia. And it came in dead

00:16:28.509 --> 00:16:30.730
last out of six songs. Which is a comforting

00:16:30.730 --> 00:16:32.549
thought, isn't it? It just goes to show that

00:16:32.549 --> 00:16:34.950
finding your artistic voice takes time. Even

00:16:34.950 --> 00:16:38.049
for undeniable geniuses, writing generic pop

00:16:38.049 --> 00:16:40.289
for other people wasn't utilizing their true

00:16:40.289 --> 00:16:42.429
potential. They needed to pivot. They had to

00:16:42.429 --> 00:16:44.429
start writing for themselves. Yes. They needed

00:16:44.429 --> 00:16:47.509
to start writing more complex, deeply personal

00:16:47.509 --> 00:16:50.610
material that Elton himself could perform. And

00:16:50.610 --> 00:16:53.870
that pivot resulted in his debut album, Empty

00:16:53.870 --> 00:16:57.779
Sky, in 1969. It didn't make massive waves, but

00:16:57.779 --> 00:17:00.600
it set the stage. Then came the self -titled

00:17:00.600 --> 00:17:03.659
Elton John album in 1970. That was the breakthrough.

00:17:03.980 --> 00:17:07.000
That album gave the world your song, his first

00:17:07.000 --> 00:17:09.779
major hit single. And that single kicked off

00:17:09.779 --> 00:17:12.759
a level of output and dominance in the 1970s

00:17:12.759 --> 00:17:15.180
that is almost mathematically hard to comprehend

00:17:15.180 --> 00:17:18.200
today. The sheer stamina required for what followed

00:17:18.200 --> 00:17:22.980
is staggering. Between 1972 and 1975, Elton John

00:17:22.980 --> 00:17:25.980
achieved seven consecutive number one albums

00:17:25.980 --> 00:17:27.839
in the United States. Seven in a row. Seven.

00:17:27.839 --> 00:17:30.200
That was an entirely unprecedented feat at the

00:17:30.200 --> 00:17:32.140
time. To put that in perspective, he released

00:17:32.140 --> 00:17:34.140
albums like Honky Chateau, Don't Shoot Me, I'm

00:17:34.140 --> 00:17:36.039
Only the Piano Player, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,

00:17:36.160 --> 00:17:38.200
Caribou, Captain Fantastic, and the Brown Dirt

00:17:38.200 --> 00:17:40.619
Cowboy, and Rock of the Westies, all number one.

00:17:40.640 --> 00:17:42.539
That's an unbelievable run. He was essentially

00:17:42.539 --> 00:17:45.079
releasing a genre defining culturally massive

00:17:45.099 --> 00:17:48.259
album every six to nine months. That volume is

00:17:48.259 --> 00:17:51.839
just insane. In today's industry, an artist might

00:17:51.839 --> 00:17:54.380
take three to five years between major album

00:17:54.380 --> 00:17:57.180
cycles. Elton and Bernie were writing and recording

00:17:57.180 --> 00:17:59.599
these masterworks in a matter of days or weeks,

00:17:59.960 --> 00:18:02.339
often while actively touring. They were machines.

00:18:02.599 --> 00:18:04.900
And to illustrate just how big he was during

00:18:04.900 --> 00:18:07.380
this era, I want to bring up his collaboration

00:18:07.380 --> 00:18:10.240
with John Lennon. Oh, this is a phenomenal story.

00:18:10.359 --> 00:18:13.240
He really is. Milton played piano and provided

00:18:13.240 --> 00:18:15.599
backing vocals on John Lennon's solo track, Whatever

00:18:15.599 --> 00:18:18.339
Gets You Through the Night. While they were recording,

00:18:18.700 --> 00:18:21.059
Elton boldly bet Lennon that the song would hit

00:18:21.059 --> 00:18:23.619
number one on the charts. And Lennon didn't believe

00:18:23.619 --> 00:18:26.799
him. Not at all. Lennon, who was a bit insecure

00:18:26.799 --> 00:18:29.019
about his commercial viability at the time, thought

00:18:29.019 --> 00:18:32.200
there was no way. So he promised Elton that if

00:18:32.200 --> 00:18:34.779
the song actually hit number one, he would join

00:18:34.779 --> 00:18:37.460
Elton on stage for a live performance. And you

00:18:37.460 --> 00:18:40.319
have to understand, by 1974, John Lennon was

00:18:40.319 --> 00:18:42.960
terrified of playing live. He had largely retreated

00:18:42.960 --> 00:18:45.619
from the stage after the Beatles broke up. Right.

00:18:46.220 --> 00:18:49.900
But the song did hit number one. And, true to

00:18:49.900 --> 00:18:53.940
his word, Lennon showed up. He joined Elton on

00:18:53.940 --> 00:18:55.680
stage at Madison Square Garden on Thanksgiving

00:18:55.680 --> 00:18:58.640
night in November of 1974. I can only imagine

00:18:58.640 --> 00:19:01.119
the energy in that room. The crowd went absolutely

00:19:01.119 --> 00:19:03.539
ballistic. They performed that track, plus Lucy

00:19:03.539 --> 00:19:05.779
in the sky with diamonds and the early Beatles

00:19:05.779 --> 00:19:08.759
hit. I saw her standing there. But what makes

00:19:08.759 --> 00:19:11.440
that specific anecdote so incredibly poignant

00:19:11.440 --> 00:19:13.819
is looking back at it with historical hindsight.

00:19:13.880 --> 00:19:16.619
Yes, because that night at Madison Square Garden

00:19:16.619 --> 00:19:19.759
turned out to be John Lennon's final major live

00:19:19.759 --> 00:19:22.700
performance before his tragic death in 1980.

00:19:23.319 --> 00:19:26.039
Elton John's sheer gravitational pull, his massive

00:19:26.039 --> 00:19:28.839
popularity, and his sheer enthusiasm were the

00:19:28.839 --> 00:19:31.200
exact forces needed to coax the next Beatle back

00:19:31.200 --> 00:19:33.410
out onto the stage one last time. Here's where

00:19:33.410 --> 00:19:35.730
it gets really interesting, though. We've talked

00:19:35.730 --> 00:19:37.849
about the musical triumphs, the unbreakable songwriting

00:19:37.849 --> 00:19:40.230
formula, the historic chart dominance. The bright

00:19:40.230 --> 00:19:43.690
side of the fame. Exactly. But as the 1970s wore

00:19:43.690 --> 00:19:46.950
on, the pressure of that exact dominance began

00:19:46.950 --> 00:19:49.869
to crack the foundation. The fame started to

00:19:49.869 --> 00:19:52.390
manifest physically. The costumes got wildly

00:19:52.390 --> 00:19:55.130
out of control, and behind the scenes, his personal

00:19:55.130 --> 00:19:58.680
life was plunging into absolute chaos. We had

00:19:58.680 --> 00:20:01.039
touched on this idea earlier how the stage persona

00:20:01.039 --> 00:20:03.480
was initially a joyful release from his strict

00:20:03.480 --> 00:20:07.519
childhood, but by the mid -1970s it had mutated.

00:20:07.579 --> 00:20:10.420
Mutated how? It escalated from a fun performance

00:20:10.420 --> 00:20:12.980
choice into a desperate form of psychological

00:20:12.980 --> 00:20:15.880
armor. The sage wardrobe wasn't just a pair of

00:20:15.880 --> 00:20:18.180
quirky Buddy Holly glasses anymore. He was wearing

00:20:18.180 --> 00:20:20.599
massive headdresses of ostrich feathers. Right,

00:20:20.660 --> 00:20:24.039
the extravagant outfits. He wore $5 ,000 spectacles

00:20:24.039 --> 00:20:26.480
that literally spelled his name in flashing lights.

00:20:26.900 --> 00:20:29.140
He wore towering platform boots that made it

00:20:29.140 --> 00:20:31.839
difficult to walk. He performed entire sets dressed

00:20:31.839 --> 00:20:34.339
as the Statue of Liberty or as Wolfgang Amadeus

00:20:34.339 --> 00:20:36.359
Mozart, complete with the powdered wig. And it

00:20:36.359 --> 00:20:38.059
wasn't just a fashion statement, was it? No,

00:20:38.059 --> 00:20:40.500
it was a barricade. He was constructing these

00:20:40.500 --> 00:20:43.500
massive, distracting visual edifices. so that

00:20:43.500 --> 00:20:45.279
the audience wouldn't look too closely at the

00:20:45.279 --> 00:20:47.880
man underneath. That's incredibly sad. He was

00:20:47.880 --> 00:20:50.400
living at the absolute extremes of the human

00:20:50.400 --> 00:20:52.880
experience. On one side of the curtain, he is

00:20:52.880 --> 00:20:55.359
arguably the single biggest pop star on the planet,

00:20:55.720 --> 00:20:59.140
radiating joy and energy. But behind closed doors,

00:20:59.200 --> 00:21:01.079
he was struggling with life -threatening addictions

00:21:01.079 --> 00:21:04.119
and profound insecurity. The sources are really

00:21:04.119 --> 00:21:07.400
stark about this period. By 1975, the immense

00:21:07.400 --> 00:21:09.539
pressures of his relentless touring and recording

00:21:09.539 --> 00:21:12.619
schedule were taking a severe undeniable toll.

00:21:12.759 --> 00:21:15.940
during a period that the media dubbed Elton Week

00:21:15.940 --> 00:21:19.430
in Los Angeles in 1975. which culminated in two

00:21:19.430 --> 00:21:22.210
massive sold -out shows at Dodger Stadium, he

00:21:22.210 --> 00:21:24.769
suffered a severe cocaine overdose. The fuel

00:21:24.769 --> 00:21:27.029
required to maintain the Elton John machine was

00:21:27.029 --> 00:21:29.369
increasingly chemical, and it wasn't just narcotics.

00:21:29.710 --> 00:21:32.569
He developed a severe alcohol addiction. He also

00:21:32.569 --> 00:21:35.309
battled bulimia for years. That specific detail

00:21:35.309 --> 00:21:37.150
about the bulimia is heartbreaking, especially

00:21:37.150 --> 00:21:39.009
when you consider who he eventually confided

00:21:39.009 --> 00:21:41.650
in. In a deeply candid interview with Larry King

00:21:41.650 --> 00:21:44.150
in 2002, Elton discussed his battle with the

00:21:44.150 --> 00:21:46.359
eating disorder. He revealed that he and Princess

00:21:46.359 --> 00:21:48.519
Diana actually shared that exact same struggle.

00:21:48.599 --> 00:21:51.200
Oh, really? Yes. They confided in each other.

00:21:51.519 --> 00:21:53.539
Two of the most famous, most photographed people

00:21:53.539 --> 00:21:56.279
in the world, both quietly suffering from the

00:21:56.279 --> 00:21:58.740
same brutal disorder while constantly in the

00:21:58.740 --> 00:22:01.480
public eye. It highlights the extreme isolation

00:22:01.480 --> 00:22:04.720
of that level of fame. When you are that famous,

00:22:05.059 --> 00:22:07.440
your peer group of people who actually understand

00:22:07.440 --> 00:22:10.380
your day -to -day reality shrinks to almost zero.

00:22:10.519 --> 00:22:13.480
And yet, he kept performing. Which brings us

00:22:13.480 --> 00:22:16.579
back to that 1980 concert in Central Park. Let's

00:22:16.579 --> 00:22:18.740
look at that Donald Duck costume again with this

00:22:18.740 --> 00:22:21.059
new context. It changes everything. It really

00:22:21.059 --> 00:22:24.099
does. Imagine the sheer dark surrealism of that

00:22:24.099 --> 00:22:27.029
moment. You have half a million people cheering

00:22:27.029 --> 00:22:29.730
with pure joy for a man dressed as a cartoon

00:22:29.730 --> 00:22:32.769
duck playing classical infused rock piano while

00:22:32.769 --> 00:22:34.730
the man inside the suit is actively dying from

00:22:34.730 --> 00:22:37.230
addiction and eating decorders. It is a devastating

00:22:37.230 --> 00:22:39.490
image when you strip away the bright colors and

00:22:39.490 --> 00:22:41.789
he lived in that dangerous chaotic space for

00:22:41.789 --> 00:22:44.430
a long time. He didn't achieve sustained sobriety

00:22:44.430 --> 00:22:48.150
until 1990. A full decade later, how did he finally

00:22:48.150 --> 00:22:50.130
break out of it? Because so many legacy artists

00:22:50.130 --> 00:22:54.380
from that era sadly never made it out. The catalysts

00:22:54.380 --> 00:22:56.759
for his survival are incredibly poignant and

00:22:56.759 --> 00:23:00.460
they speak to his underlying deep empathy. He

00:23:00.460 --> 00:23:02.619
attributes his ultimate wake -up call to spending

00:23:02.619 --> 00:23:05.220
time with the family of Ryan White. For our younger

00:23:05.220 --> 00:23:06.940
listeners who might not know, who was Ryan White?

00:23:07.240 --> 00:23:09.839
Ryan White was a teenage boy from Indiana who

00:23:09.839 --> 00:23:12.680
became a national poster child for the HIV's

00:23:12.680 --> 00:23:15.240
crisis in the United States during the 1980s.

00:23:15.279 --> 00:23:18.740
He was a hemophiliac who tragically contracted

00:23:18.740 --> 00:23:22.480
HIV through a contaminated blood treatment. At

00:23:22.480 --> 00:23:25.549
the time, there was immense paralyzing stigma

00:23:25.549 --> 00:23:28.710
and fear surrounding the disease. Ryan was actually

00:23:28.710 --> 00:23:30.690
expelled from his middle school because of his

00:23:30.690 --> 00:23:32.789
diagnosis. That's awful. Elton John befriended

00:23:32.789 --> 00:23:35.349
Ryan and his family, and he was deeply moved

00:23:35.349 --> 00:23:37.789
by how they handled this horrific injustice.

00:23:38.430 --> 00:23:41.190
Elton later said that seeing the grace, the dignity

00:23:41.190 --> 00:23:43.809
and the sheer courage of the White family made

00:23:43.809 --> 00:23:46.609
him look at his own life in the mirror. He realized

00:23:46.609 --> 00:23:48.470
that while this family was fighting for their

00:23:48.470 --> 00:23:51.109
son's life with such nobility, his own lifestyle

00:23:51.109 --> 00:23:54.460
was, in his words, crazy and out of order. He

00:23:54.460 --> 00:23:56.539
was complaining about hotel rooms while this

00:23:56.539 --> 00:23:59.180
kid was fighting a terminal illness. That perspective

00:23:59.180 --> 00:24:02.160
shift was vital. He also credited a specific

00:24:02.160 --> 00:24:05.240
piece of music as a catalyst. Which song? He

00:24:05.240 --> 00:24:08.059
cited the 1986 song Don't Give Up by Kate Bush

00:24:08.059 --> 00:24:10.220
and Peter Gabriel as playing a significant part

00:24:10.220 --> 00:24:12.980
in his rebirth. Specifically, the lyrics about

00:24:12.980 --> 00:24:14.920
resting your head and not worrying too much.

00:24:15.500 --> 00:24:17.980
The concept that it is okay to admit defeat,

00:24:18.380 --> 00:24:20.559
ask for help and start over. But getting clean

00:24:20.559 --> 00:24:22.480
isn't just about stopping the substance abuse.

00:24:23.119 --> 00:24:26.160
For an artist, it brings up a terrifying creative

00:24:26.160 --> 00:24:28.849
challenge. How do you maintain your creative

00:24:28.849 --> 00:24:31.150
identity when the substances you've relied on

00:24:31.150 --> 00:24:34.150
for decades to fuel your art are suddenly removed?

00:24:34.349 --> 00:24:36.589
That is the great hurdle for so many artists

00:24:36.589 --> 00:24:39.150
who get sober They are terrified that the magic

00:24:39.150 --> 00:24:42.170
was in the drugs not in themselves Elton faced

00:24:42.170 --> 00:24:45.390
this head -on with his 1992 album the one he

00:24:45.390 --> 00:24:47.589
admitted very openly that it was his first album

00:24:47.589 --> 00:24:50.910
recorded 100 % sober and he didn't sugarcoat

00:24:50.910 --> 00:24:53.589
it He said the process was tough. He was completely

00:24:53.589 --> 00:24:55.829
unmoored because he was so used to making records

00:24:55.829 --> 00:24:58.180
writing melody and performing under the heavy

00:24:58.180 --> 00:25:00.640
haze of alcohol or drugs. You essentially have

00:25:00.640 --> 00:25:02.420
to relearn how to walk. You have to learn how

00:25:02.420 --> 00:25:05.220
to trust your own raw instincts without the chemical

00:25:05.220 --> 00:25:07.559
crutch you've used your entire adult life. If

00:25:07.559 --> 00:25:10.039
we connect this to the bigger picture, the release

00:25:10.039 --> 00:25:12.380
of the one in his newfound sobriety represent

00:25:12.380 --> 00:25:15.519
a massive tectonic shift in his life. In what

00:25:15.519 --> 00:25:18.029
way? Getting clean didn't just save his physical

00:25:18.029 --> 00:25:21.089
life. It unlocked a completely new era of his

00:25:21.089 --> 00:25:24.150
cultural impact. He didn't just survive the 80s.

00:25:24.269 --> 00:25:27.150
He transformed into a figure of incredible philanthropy

00:25:27.150 --> 00:25:30.410
and statesmanship in the 1990s. He weaponized

00:25:30.410 --> 00:25:33.690
his fame and his vast wealth for profound social

00:25:33.690 --> 00:25:35.829
good. Weaponized is the perfect word because

00:25:35.829 --> 00:25:38.250
the 1990s started with immense tragedy for him.

00:25:38.369 --> 00:25:41.150
He lost Ryan White in 1990. And then just a year

00:25:41.150 --> 00:25:43.630
later in 1991, he lost his very close friend,

00:25:44.029 --> 00:25:45.940
Freddie Mercury, the legendary front man of Queen,

00:25:46.420 --> 00:25:48.799
also to AIDS. The compounded grief of losing

00:25:48.799 --> 00:25:51.339
those two vital people catalyzed him into action.

00:25:51.619 --> 00:25:54.660
In 1992, he founded the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

00:25:54.940 --> 00:25:56.940
And what's remarkable is that he didn't just

00:25:56.940 --> 00:25:59.880
quietly donate a chunk of his royalties and slap

00:25:59.880 --> 00:26:03.059
his name on a letterhead. He actively used his

00:26:03.059 --> 00:26:06.019
status as this glamorous high society fixture

00:26:06.019 --> 00:26:08.740
to force people to pay attention and open their

00:26:08.740 --> 00:26:11.079
wallets. Exactly. He leveraged the very things

00:26:11.079 --> 00:26:13.200
that made him famous, the excess, the parties,

00:26:13.559 --> 00:26:16.519
the celebrity connections to fund the foundation.

00:26:17.440 --> 00:26:20.200
The sources mentioned these massive lavish events

00:26:20.200 --> 00:26:23.099
he would host. He started his annual Academy

00:26:23.099 --> 00:26:26.619
Awards party in 1993, which instantly became

00:26:26.619 --> 00:26:29.079
and still remains one of the most exclusive and

00:26:29.079 --> 00:26:31.490
lucrative events in Hollywood. Definitely. He

00:26:31.490 --> 00:26:33.829
also hosted the white tie and tiara ball at his

00:26:33.829 --> 00:26:36.609
massive estate in Old Windsor. He would essentially

00:26:36.609 --> 00:26:39.210
trap billionaires and Hollywood elites in a room,

00:26:39.509 --> 00:26:42.309
feed them absurdly opulent food and extract millions

00:26:42.309 --> 00:26:44.750
of dollars from them for charity. I read about

00:26:44.750 --> 00:26:46.690
one specific menu from these balls that featured

00:26:46.690 --> 00:26:49.670
a delicate truffle souffle followed by a massive

00:26:49.670 --> 00:26:52.970
surf and turf and for dessert, a giant Knickerbocker

00:26:52.970 --> 00:26:55.250
glory. Which is such a brilliant and very British

00:26:55.250 --> 00:26:57.930
touch. Tell us about that. For those unfamiliar,

00:26:58.410 --> 00:27:01.089
a Knickerbocker Glory is essentially a massive

00:27:01.089 --> 00:27:04.410
layered ice cream sundae served in a tall glass,

00:27:04.730 --> 00:27:08.069
very popular in British seaside towns. Serving

00:27:08.069 --> 00:27:10.869
that at a high society, White Tie Gala is a very

00:27:10.869 --> 00:27:13.230
cheeky, very Elton way of cutting through the

00:27:13.230 --> 00:27:16.569
pretension. But the results were incredibly serious.

00:27:16.910 --> 00:27:19.029
To date, the foundation has raised over $600

00:27:19.029 --> 00:27:22.150
million globally to combat the disease. And it

00:27:22.150 --> 00:27:24.309
wasn't just the money, was it? No, it was the

00:27:24.309 --> 00:27:27.190
visibility. It's vital to recognize the cultural

00:27:27.190 --> 00:27:30.309
context of the early 1990s. He was fundamentally

00:27:30.309 --> 00:27:33.309
shifting societal awareness of HIV and AIDS during

00:27:33.309 --> 00:27:35.910
an era where it was still highly stigmatized,

00:27:36.170 --> 00:27:38.710
often ignored by governments, and deeply misunderstood

00:27:38.710 --> 00:27:41.609
by the public. He used his massive mainstream

00:27:41.609 --> 00:27:44.410
platform to force conversations that polite society

00:27:44.410 --> 00:27:47.269
was actively trying to avoid. That cultural gravity

00:27:47.269 --> 00:27:49.529
he carried, his ability to unite the world through

00:27:49.529 --> 00:27:52.250
music in times of crisis, was never more apparent

00:27:52.250 --> 00:27:55.000
than in the of 1997. A truly devastating year

00:27:55.000 --> 00:27:56.940
for him personally and for the world globally.

00:27:57.319 --> 00:28:00.200
In the span of just a few weeks he lost two extremely

00:28:00.200 --> 00:28:03.740
close friends to horrific sudden tragedies. In

00:28:03.740 --> 00:28:06.500
July the iconic fashion designer Gianni Versace

00:28:06.500 --> 00:28:09.319
was murdered outside his home in Miami. Elton

00:28:09.319 --> 00:28:11.519
was devastated and then at the end of August

00:28:11.519 --> 00:28:14.819
Princess Diana died in a horrific car crash in

00:28:14.819 --> 00:28:17.440
Paris. The world was in an absolute state of

00:28:17.440 --> 00:28:19.700
shock. There was this unprecedented outpouring

00:28:19.700 --> 00:28:22.200
of public grief, and the British royal family

00:28:22.200 --> 00:28:24.559
was facing immense public scrutiny over their

00:28:24.559 --> 00:28:27.039
handling of the tragedy. They needed a moment

00:28:27.039 --> 00:28:29.619
of tatharsis. Right. Elton John was asked to

00:28:29.619 --> 00:28:31.740
perform at Diana's funeral, which was to be held

00:28:31.740 --> 00:28:34.539
at Westminster Abbey, and broadcast to an estimated

00:28:34.539 --> 00:28:38.200
2 .5 billion people worldwide. Imagine the pressure

00:28:38.200 --> 00:28:40.819
of that moment. He reaches out to Bernie Taupin.

00:28:40.960 --> 00:28:43.539
He asked Bernie to revise the lyrics of their

00:28:43.539 --> 00:28:47.400
classic 1973 song, Candle in the Wind. Now, the

00:28:47.400 --> 00:28:49.200
original song was written as a tribute to Marilyn

00:28:49.200 --> 00:28:51.900
Monroe. Elton asked Bernie to adapt it to honor

00:28:51.900 --> 00:28:54.119
Diana. And Toppin agreed, and he rewrote the

00:28:54.119 --> 00:28:56.200
lyrics, changing the opening line from Goodbye

00:28:56.200 --> 00:28:59.720
Norma Jean to Goodbye England's Rose. And Elton

00:28:59.720 --> 00:29:02.400
performed Candle in the Wind 1997 live at the

00:29:02.400 --> 00:29:05.000
funeral. And he stated he would only ever play

00:29:05.000 --> 00:29:07.480
that specific version once, and he caped his

00:29:07.480 --> 00:29:09.579
word. It was a singular moment in history. I

00:29:09.579 --> 00:29:12.180
remember vividly watching that broadcast, the

00:29:12.180 --> 00:29:14.579
absolute silence in the abbey, the raw grief

00:29:14.579 --> 00:29:17.259
on his face as he played, the collective emotion

00:29:17.259 --> 00:29:20.200
of the entire globe was focused on him at that

00:29:20.200 --> 00:29:23.500
piano. And the impact of that specific recording

00:29:23.500 --> 00:29:26.640
is almost impossible to overstate. It broke every

00:29:26.640 --> 00:29:29.140
record. It sold over 33 million copies globally.

00:29:29.579 --> 00:29:32.480
It is officially verified by Guinness World Records

00:29:32.480 --> 00:29:35.039
as the best -selling chart single since the modern

00:29:35.039 --> 00:29:38.180
charts began in the 1950s, and he donated the

00:29:38.180 --> 00:29:40.539
proceeds which amounted to roughly 55 million

00:29:40.539 --> 00:29:44.160
pounds entirely to Diana's charities. It transcended

00:29:44.160 --> 00:29:46.740
being a pop song. It became a global moment of

00:29:46.740 --> 00:29:49.660
shared mourning and healing. It was a remarkable,

00:29:49.660 --> 00:29:52.640
unprecedented demonstration of how deeply embedded

00:29:52.640 --> 00:29:55.339
his music was in the global consciousness. He

00:29:55.339 --> 00:29:57.460
wasn't just a pop star anymore. He was a cultural

00:29:57.460 --> 00:29:59.720
pillar. Absolutely. And what is so fascinating

00:29:59.720 --> 00:30:02.940
about his career trajectory is that having reached

00:30:02.940 --> 00:30:05.640
that absolute pinnacle, having literally conquered

00:30:05.640 --> 00:30:08.819
the pop charts, rock arenas and global philanthropy

00:30:08.819 --> 00:30:12.460
as the 90s ended and the 2000s began, He didn't

00:30:12.460 --> 00:30:15.559
rest. He sought out entirely new creative mountains

00:30:15.559 --> 00:30:18.119
to climb. He turned his sights to Broadway. And

00:30:18.119 --> 00:30:21.000
honestly, he completely took over the world of

00:30:21.000 --> 00:30:23.339
musical theater. He did. He teamed up with the

00:30:23.339 --> 00:30:25.940
legendary lyricist Tim Rice for Disney's animated

00:30:25.940 --> 00:30:29.240
film The Lion King in 1994. That project won

00:30:29.240 --> 00:30:31.539
him an Academy Award for Can You Feel the Love

00:30:31.539 --> 00:30:33.799
Tonight? Such a classic. Then they adapted it

00:30:33.799 --> 00:30:36.660
for Broadway in 1997. And the stage version eventually

00:30:36.660 --> 00:30:38.920
became the top running title in box office history

00:30:38.920 --> 00:30:41.500
for both stage and film. And he didn't stop there.

00:30:41.690 --> 00:30:44.069
He wrote the music for Aida, which won him a

00:30:44.069 --> 00:30:47.009
Tony Award for Best Original Score in 2000. Then

00:30:47.009 --> 00:30:49.930
he wrote Billy Elliot the Musical in 2005, which

00:30:49.930 --> 00:30:53.329
was another massive multi -award -winning global

00:30:53.329 --> 00:30:55.769
smash. I have to ask, though, from a psychological

00:30:55.769 --> 00:30:58.490
perspective, what drives an artist who has already

00:30:58.490 --> 00:31:00.670
achieved literally everything to tackle musical

00:31:00.670 --> 00:31:03.289
theater? It's a notoriously difficult, collaborative,

00:31:03.809 --> 00:31:06.039
exhausting medium. I would speculate that for

00:31:06.039 --> 00:31:09.160
Elton John, musical theater represents the ultimate

00:31:09.160 --> 00:31:11.579
test of a melodist. Think about it. When you

00:31:11.579 --> 00:31:14.180
write and perform a pop song, you are relying

00:31:14.180 --> 00:31:17.200
heavily on your own larger -than -life persona,

00:31:17.559 --> 00:31:19.859
your voice, and your stage presence to sell it

00:31:19.859 --> 00:31:22.259
to the audience. Right. In musical theater, your

00:31:22.259 --> 00:31:25.299
music has to stand completely on its own. The

00:31:25.299 --> 00:31:28.099
composer is largely invisible. Your melodies

00:31:28.099 --> 00:31:31.220
have to tell a cohesive narrative, convey highly

00:31:31.220 --> 00:31:34.859
specific complex character emotions, and move

00:31:34.859 --> 00:31:37.160
an audience without Elton John physically sitting

00:31:37.160 --> 00:31:40.180
on the stage to deliver it. Wow. It's proof that

00:31:40.180 --> 00:31:42.220
the underlying musical architecture he creates

00:31:42.220 --> 00:31:45.059
is bulletproof. It works whether he's singing

00:31:45.059 --> 00:31:47.140
it or whether a kid playing Billy Elliot is singing

00:31:47.140 --> 00:31:49.519
it. So what does this all mean for his legacy

00:31:49.519 --> 00:31:51.960
as he moves into his later decades? As he becomes

00:31:51.960 --> 00:31:53.940
this literal fixture of the British establishment,

00:31:54.380 --> 00:31:56.799
he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998,

00:31:57.400 --> 00:31:59.400
becoming Sir Elton John. You would expect him

00:31:59.400 --> 00:32:01.440
to just rest on his laurels, play the old hits,

00:32:01.579 --> 00:32:03.599
and coast into retirement. But that is exactly

00:32:03.599 --> 00:32:06.339
what he refused to do. And that refusal is a

00:32:06.339 --> 00:32:08.319
crucial part of his extraordinary longevity.

00:32:08.829 --> 00:32:11.210
Unlike so many legacy acts who dismiss modern

00:32:11.210 --> 00:32:13.309
music, complain about the current state of the

00:32:13.309 --> 00:32:15.769
industry, or retreat entirely into pure nostalgia

00:32:15.769 --> 00:32:19.490
tours, Elton John actively, hungrily seeks out

00:32:19.490 --> 00:32:22.269
the new. He champions young artists. His list

00:32:22.269 --> 00:32:25.049
of modern collaborations is staggering, and it

00:32:25.049 --> 00:32:27.809
spans literally every single genre. One of the

00:32:27.809 --> 00:32:30.700
most shocking was at the 2001 Grammys. Eminem

00:32:30.700 --> 00:32:33.480
was facing intense public backlash and protests

00:32:33.480 --> 00:32:36.339
over controversial lyrics that were widely condemned

00:32:36.339 --> 00:32:39.019
as homophobic. Who steps out onto the Grammy

00:32:39.019 --> 00:32:41.460
stage to perform the chorus of Eminem's hit song,

00:32:41.660 --> 00:32:44.359
Stand, with him? Elton John. A huge cultural

00:32:44.359 --> 00:32:46.940
moment. It completely defied expectations and

00:32:46.940 --> 00:32:49.119
forced everyone to reevaluate the cultural conversation.

00:32:49.759 --> 00:32:52.099
Then in 2013, he is playing piano and singing

00:32:52.099 --> 00:32:54.220
backing vocals for the heavy desert rock bands

00:32:54.220 --> 00:32:56.240
Queens of the Stone Age. He just refuses to be

00:32:56.240 --> 00:32:59.240
boxed in. And that collaborative spirit was incredibly

00:32:59.240 --> 00:33:02.059
evident during the COVID -19 pandemic. While

00:33:02.059 --> 00:33:04.819
the entire music industry was shut down, he created

00:33:04.819 --> 00:33:07.720
an entire album called The Lockdown Sessions,

00:33:08.039 --> 00:33:11.380
released in 2021. He collaborated over Zoom and

00:33:11.380 --> 00:33:13.720
in highly restricted studio sessions with artists

00:33:13.720 --> 00:33:17.480
ranging from Lil Nas X to Miley Cyrus to Dua

00:33:17.480 --> 00:33:19.579
Lipa. I read an interview where he explained

00:33:19.579 --> 00:33:22.490
that making the lockdown sessions actually reminded

00:33:22.490 --> 00:33:25.789
him of his roots in the late 1960s. Before he

00:33:25.789 --> 00:33:27.730
was Elton John, he was just the humble session

00:33:27.730 --> 00:33:30.170
musician showing up to play piano on other people's

00:33:30.170 --> 00:33:32.369
tracks. Right, coming full circle. He loved returning

00:33:32.369 --> 00:33:34.509
to that role. He wasn't the star, he was just

00:33:34.509 --> 00:33:37.069
the piano player helping a younger artist realize

00:33:37.069 --> 00:33:39.740
their vision. He genuinely loves being a fan

00:33:39.740 --> 00:33:42.240
of music. He hosts an Apple Music radio show

00:33:42.240 --> 00:33:44.480
called Rocket Hour, where his primary goal is

00:33:44.480 --> 00:33:46.839
to interview and showcase brand new artists.

00:33:47.259 --> 00:33:49.200
He has stated repeatedly that listening to new

00:33:49.200 --> 00:33:51.299
music, discovering 15 year old artists who are

00:33:51.299 --> 00:33:53.619
just starting out is what keeps him inspired,

00:33:53.880 --> 00:33:56.900
animated and young. He refuses to let his musical

00:33:56.900 --> 00:34:00.200
curiosity stagnate. And that curiosity pays off

00:34:00.200 --> 00:34:03.140
in tangible, historic ways. His collaboration

00:34:03.140 --> 00:34:05.319
with Dua Lipa, the Cold Heart Now remix, hit

00:34:05.319 --> 00:34:08.820
number one in the UK in 2021. With that single

00:34:08.820 --> 00:34:11.960
hit, Elton John broke another record. He became

00:34:11.960 --> 00:34:14.420
the first solo artist in history to have UK top

00:34:14.420 --> 00:34:17.980
10 hits across six different decades. Six decades.

00:34:18.139 --> 00:34:22.400
The 1970s, 80s, 90s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s.

00:34:22.539 --> 00:34:24.820
Six decades of being at the bleeding edge of

00:34:24.820 --> 00:34:27.030
pop culture. It is an unparalleled chart run.

00:34:27.349 --> 00:34:30.530
And interestingly, that massive late career resurgence

00:34:30.530 --> 00:34:33.230
ran parallel to his monumental farewell to the

00:34:33.230 --> 00:34:35.469
stage. He announced the Farewell Yellow Brick

00:34:35.469 --> 00:34:38.869
Road Tour back in 2018. He cited a profound desire

00:34:38.869 --> 00:34:40.909
to finally step away from the grueling touring

00:34:40.909 --> 00:34:43.530
lifestyle and prioritize spending time with his

00:34:43.530 --> 00:34:45.969
husband and their two young sons. And typical

00:34:45.969 --> 00:34:47.989
for Elton, his farewell wasn't just a quick lap

00:34:47.989 --> 00:34:50.809
around the globe. The tour spanned over 300 concerts

00:34:50.809 --> 00:34:53.909
worldwide, wrapping up in Stockholm in July 2023.

00:34:54.219 --> 00:34:56.360
At the time it concluded, it was officially the

00:34:56.360 --> 00:34:58.940
highest grossing concert tour in history, a victory

00:34:58.940 --> 00:35:01.340
lap unlike any other. But the magnetic pull of

00:35:01.340 --> 00:35:03.260
the stage just keeps calling him back even when

00:35:03.260 --> 00:35:05.900
his health throws massive unexpected curveballs.

00:35:06.360 --> 00:35:08.559
Right. The sources note a very recent development.

00:35:08.840 --> 00:35:11.639
In the summer of 2024, he suffered a severe eye

00:35:11.639 --> 00:35:14.380
infection. It left him completely blind in his

00:35:14.380 --> 00:35:16.960
right eye and with very limited vision in his

00:35:16.960 --> 00:35:19.880
left. He publicly revealed this incredibly personal

00:35:19.880 --> 00:35:23.420
struggle in December 2024. And yet, despite the

00:35:23.420 --> 00:35:26.000
significant vision loss and despite being officially

00:35:26.000 --> 00:35:28.739
retired from touring, what did he do? He returned

00:35:28.739 --> 00:35:32.139
to the stage to perform for 70 ,000 people at

00:35:32.139 --> 00:35:35.920
the Singapore Grand Prix in October 2025. I have

00:35:35.920 --> 00:35:38.710
to ask you, why do that? Think about it. You

00:35:38.710 --> 00:35:40.929
have hundreds of millions of dollars. You have

00:35:40.929 --> 00:35:42.969
your egotie. You have your loving family. You

00:35:42.969 --> 00:35:45.550
have secured your legacy tenfold. And you have

00:35:45.550 --> 00:35:47.750
tragically lost your vision. Why put yourself

00:35:47.750 --> 00:35:49.610
through the physical stress of traveling to Singapore

00:35:49.610 --> 00:35:52.670
to get back in front of 70 ,000 people? I speculate

00:35:52.670 --> 00:35:55.349
that for Reginald Dwight, the quiet boy who hid

00:35:55.349 --> 00:35:57.570
behind the piano and the oversized fake Buddy

00:35:57.570 --> 00:35:59.789
Holly glasses to escape the unbearable tension

00:35:59.789 --> 00:36:02.730
of his childhood, the stage isn't just a job.

00:36:03.030 --> 00:36:05.530
It is his ultimate home. It's the place where

00:36:05.530 --> 00:36:09.210
he is most fully unapologetically himself. The

00:36:09.210 --> 00:36:11.690
sheer energy exchange with a massive audience

00:36:11.690 --> 00:36:13.949
isn't just an ego boost, it is a fundamental

00:36:13.949 --> 00:36:16.869
part of his life force. You don't just turn off

00:36:16.869 --> 00:36:18.809
a source of energy that has sustained you for

00:36:18.809 --> 00:36:21.150
60 years. That is a beautiful way to look at

00:36:21.150 --> 00:36:23.530
it. So what does this all mean? We've explored

00:36:23.530 --> 00:36:25.789
the incredible music, the dark depths of the

00:36:25.789 --> 00:36:27.909
addiction, the world -changing philanthropy,

00:36:28.170 --> 00:36:31.510
and the ongoing six -decade relevance. Let's

00:36:31.510 --> 00:36:33.869
transition into our final section, the highly

00:36:33.869 --> 00:36:36.519
complex personal life. the deeply held beliefs

00:36:36.519 --> 00:36:38.940
and the passions of the man behind the legendary

00:36:38.940 --> 00:36:41.460
glasses. To understand the man today, we have

00:36:41.460 --> 00:36:43.440
to look at how dramatically his personal life

00:36:43.440 --> 00:36:46.199
evolved alongside his musical one. In his early

00:36:46.199 --> 00:36:48.679
years, before the massive fame hit, he was actually

00:36:48.679 --> 00:36:51.880
engaged to a woman named Linda Woodrow. Interestingly,

00:36:52.159 --> 00:36:54.760
our sources note that in 2020, 50 years after

00:36:54.760 --> 00:36:56.659
he broke off their engagement, he stepped in

00:36:56.659 --> 00:36:58.659
to financially assist her with severe medical

00:36:58.659 --> 00:37:01.360
fees. It shows a remarkable sense of continued

00:37:01.360 --> 00:37:03.730
connection to his past. After that engagement

00:37:03.730 --> 00:37:06.929
ended, he had his first significant gay relationship

00:37:06.929 --> 00:37:09.750
with his manager, John Reed. But his path to

00:37:09.750 --> 00:37:12.829
fully embracing his sexuality was long and complicated.

00:37:13.550 --> 00:37:16.750
In 1984, he shocked the public by marrying his

00:37:16.750 --> 00:37:19.230
close friend and sound engineer, a woman named

00:37:19.230 --> 00:37:21.630
Renee Blau. That marriage lasted four years,

00:37:21.730 --> 00:37:24.309
ending in divorce in 1988. And it remained a

00:37:24.309 --> 00:37:26.449
complex part of his history. She actually sued

00:37:26.449 --> 00:37:29.369
him in 2020 over deeply personal details he shared

00:37:29.369 --> 00:37:32.230
about their time together in his 2019 autobiography.

00:37:32.570 --> 00:37:35.050
His public statements about his sexuality evolved

00:37:35.050 --> 00:37:37.869
over time as well. He first came out as bisexual

00:37:37.869 --> 00:37:41.309
in a 1976 interview with Rolling Stone. Then

00:37:41.309 --> 00:37:44.150
years later in 1992, he told them he was quite

00:37:44.150 --> 00:37:46.730
comfortable being gay. And after decades of searching,

00:37:46.909 --> 00:37:48.969
he finally found lasting peace with the Canadian

00:37:48.969 --> 00:37:51.650
advertising executive and filmmaker David Furnish.

00:37:51.840 --> 00:37:53.960
Their relationship is a testament to immense

00:37:53.960 --> 00:37:56.019
social change. They were among the very first

00:37:56.019 --> 00:37:58.119
couples to form a civil partnership in the UK

00:37:58.119 --> 00:38:01.159
when it became legal in 2005. When full marriage

00:38:01.159 --> 00:38:03.559
equality was achieved in 2014, they officially

00:38:03.559 --> 00:38:06.400
married. And they now have two sons, Zachary

00:38:06.400 --> 00:38:09.159
and Elijah, born via surrogate. This raises an

00:38:09.159 --> 00:38:11.139
important question, doesn't it? About how an

00:38:11.139 --> 00:38:14.280
artist navigates massive personal evolution while

00:38:14.280 --> 00:38:17.190
constantly in the public eye. Absolutely. Elton

00:38:17.190 --> 00:38:19.949
John has lived through and in many ways helped

00:38:19.949 --> 00:38:23.309
to push forward a massive tectonic shift in LGBTQ

00:38:23.309 --> 00:38:26.309
plus rights globally. Think about the arc of

00:38:26.309 --> 00:38:29.150
his life. He went from being a young man terrified

00:38:29.150 --> 00:38:31.269
of international adoption laws when he briefly

00:38:31.269 --> 00:38:34.050
tried to adopt a boy from Ukraine in the 1990s

00:38:34.050 --> 00:38:36.630
to happily raising two sons with his legally

00:38:36.630 --> 00:38:39.710
wedded husband. His own personal timeline reflects

00:38:39.710 --> 00:38:42.190
the broader societal timeline of progress. And

00:38:42.190 --> 00:38:44.769
his personal beliefs regarding religion are just

00:38:44.769 --> 00:38:47.559
as nuanced and fascinating. He is described as

00:38:47.559 --> 00:38:50.280
a self -declared atheist. He is strongly, often

00:38:50.280 --> 00:38:52.300
aggressively, criticized organized religion.

00:38:52.659 --> 00:38:54.559
He once stated he would ban religion completely

00:38:54.559 --> 00:38:57.179
because of its historical and ongoing role in

00:38:57.179 --> 00:38:59.639
turning hatred toward gay people. Yet simultaneously,

00:39:00.019 --> 00:39:01.980
he deeply admires the core teachings of Jesus

00:39:01.980 --> 00:39:05.869
Christ. Yes, he caused an absolute global stir

00:39:05.869 --> 00:39:08.650
in 2010 during an interview where he referred

00:39:08.650 --> 00:39:11.369
to Jesus as a compassionate, super -intelligent

00:39:11.369 --> 00:39:14.869
gay man who understood human problems. He received

00:39:14.869 --> 00:39:17.550
intense backlash and even death threats for that

00:39:17.550 --> 00:39:20.110
statement. But he wasn't trying to be merely

00:39:20.110 --> 00:39:23.269
provocative. He was making a point about empathy.

00:39:23.480 --> 00:39:26.039
He essentially separates the restrictive bureaucracy

00:39:26.039 --> 00:39:28.820
and the exclusionary dogma of organized religion

00:39:28.820 --> 00:39:31.500
from the fundamental humanistic loving teachings

00:39:31.500 --> 00:39:34.820
of Jesus. It is a highly complex, deeply personal

00:39:34.820 --> 00:39:37.659
theology that aligns with his own philanthropic

00:39:37.659 --> 00:39:40.300
worldview. OK, as we shift into his political

00:39:40.300 --> 00:39:42.159
views, I want to put my hands up and be crystal

00:39:42.159 --> 00:39:44.420
clear with you, the listener. We are strictly

00:39:44.420 --> 00:39:46.360
impartial here on the deep dive. We are not taking

00:39:46.360 --> 00:39:48.820
sides. We're not endorsing the left wing and

00:39:48.820 --> 00:39:50.619
we are not criticizing the right wing or vice

00:39:50.619 --> 00:39:53.550
versa. Our sole job today is to neutrally report

00:39:53.550 --> 00:39:55.769
what is documented in the source material about

00:39:55.769 --> 00:39:58.289
Elton John's own views and his political interactions.

00:39:58.590 --> 00:40:01.110
Understood perfectly. And politically, Elton

00:40:01.110 --> 00:40:03.650
John's interactions are fascinatingly dichotomous.

00:40:04.090 --> 00:40:07.090
They cross lines in ways that few modern celebrities

00:40:07.090 --> 00:40:10.230
manage. Historically, he has been a strong vocal

00:40:10.230 --> 00:40:12.489
supporter of the U .K. Labor Party and the U

00:40:12.489 --> 00:40:15.170
.S. Democratic Party. For example, he performed

00:40:15.170 --> 00:40:17.289
for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in

00:40:17.289 --> 00:40:20.929
2016, explicitly stating she was the only choice.

00:40:21.530 --> 00:40:23.409
And his relationship with the current Democratic

00:40:23.409 --> 00:40:26.960
leadership was highlighted in 2022. when President

00:40:26.960 --> 00:40:29.440
Joe Biden surprised him by awarding him the National

00:40:29.440 --> 00:40:32.679
Humanities Medal at the White House. Biden even

00:40:32.679 --> 00:40:34.760
shared a personal anecdote, noting that he used

00:40:34.760 --> 00:40:37.420
to sing Elton's hit Crocodile Rock to his young

00:40:37.420 --> 00:40:39.940
sons. But his relationships across the political

00:40:39.940 --> 00:40:41.780
aisle are where the complexity really shows.

00:40:42.000 --> 00:40:44.159
Take his dynamic with Republican President George

00:40:44.159 --> 00:40:47.579
W. Bush. Elton was highly publicly critical of

00:40:47.579 --> 00:40:49.659
Bush regarding the invasion of Iraq, at one point

00:40:49.659 --> 00:40:51.119
calling him the worst thing that ever happened

00:40:51.119 --> 00:40:53.780
to America. Wow, those are strong words. But

00:40:53.780 --> 00:40:56.159
later on, he entirely turned his stance around

00:40:56.159 --> 00:40:59.039
and praised Bush, stating that George W. Bush

00:40:59.039 --> 00:41:00.980
was the president who had done the most on a

00:41:00.980 --> 00:41:03.579
global scale to combat the AIDS crisis in Africa.

00:41:04.119 --> 00:41:06.500
He was willing to publicly commend a political

00:41:06.500 --> 00:41:08.579
opponent when it aligned with his philanthropic

00:41:08.579 --> 00:41:11.360
goals. And then there is his incredibly bizarre

00:41:11.360 --> 00:41:13.900
dynamic with Donald Trump. After Trump won the

00:41:13.900 --> 00:41:16.420
election, Elton politely declined an invitation

00:41:16.420 --> 00:41:19.559
to play at Trump's 2017 inauguration, stating

00:41:19.559 --> 00:41:22.039
that as a British national, he didn't feel it

00:41:22.039 --> 00:41:24.510
was appropriate to perform in an American political

00:41:24.510 --> 00:41:27.469
swearing in. But Donald Trump is a massive, highly

00:41:27.469 --> 00:41:30.670
vocal fan of Elton John's music. He played Elton's

00:41:30.670 --> 00:41:32.809
hits constantly at his political rallies to hype

00:41:32.809 --> 00:41:35.489
up the crowd. And most famously, Trump co -opted

00:41:35.489 --> 00:41:38.929
the title of Elton's 1972 hit song to nickname

00:41:38.929 --> 00:41:41.429
the North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong -un.

00:41:41.610 --> 00:41:43.929
Oh yes. Trump stood at the podium during a speech

00:41:43.929 --> 00:41:46.449
at the United Nations and referred to Kim Jong

00:41:46.449 --> 00:41:49.610
-un as Little Rocket Man. Trump even later claimed

00:41:49.610 --> 00:41:52.760
that he gave Kim Jong -un a CD of the song. signed

00:41:52.760 --> 00:41:55.840
by Elton. Now, you might expect a left -leaning

00:41:55.840 --> 00:41:58.380
celebrity to issue a furious cease and desist

00:41:58.380 --> 00:42:01.159
letter over their art being used for geopolitical

00:42:01.159 --> 00:42:04.099
insults. But what was Elton's reaction? In an

00:42:04.099 --> 00:42:05.559
interview with Variety, he was asked about it,

00:42:05.559 --> 00:42:06.960
and he just said, I laughed. I thought it was

00:42:06.960 --> 00:42:09.780
brilliant. He simply refused to take himself

00:42:09.780 --> 00:42:12.579
or the situation too seriously in that moment.

00:42:12.750 --> 00:42:15.909
It speaks to how deeply his music permeates literally

00:42:15.909 --> 00:42:18.269
all cultural and political boundaries. You have

00:42:18.269 --> 00:42:21.150
Joe Biden awarding him a prestigious medal for

00:42:21.150 --> 00:42:23.489
his humanities work, while Donald Trump uses

00:42:23.489 --> 00:42:25.869
his song lyrics to conduct high stakes international

00:42:25.869 --> 00:42:29.070
diplomacy. At the same time, Elton isn't blindly

00:42:29.070 --> 00:42:31.309
loyal to his own preferred political parties.

00:42:31.510 --> 00:42:35.679
Not at all. Very recently, in 2025, he fiercely

00:42:35.679 --> 00:42:38.000
turned on the UK Labour government, the very

00:42:38.000 --> 00:42:40.659
party he had historically campaigned for. He

00:42:40.659 --> 00:42:43.059
stated he felt incredibly betrayed over the government's

00:42:43.059 --> 00:42:45.900
plans to exempt massive tech firms from certain

00:42:45.900 --> 00:42:49.159
copyright laws for AI training. He was so angry

00:42:49.159 --> 00:42:51.300
he called the technology secretary a bit of a

00:42:51.300 --> 00:42:54.139
moron in the press. When push comes to shove,

00:42:54.360 --> 00:42:56.440
he prioritizes the rights of artists and creators

00:42:56.440 --> 00:42:58.940
over any partisan political loyalty. He remains

00:42:58.940 --> 00:43:01.579
a fiercely independent thinker. And before we

00:43:01.579 --> 00:43:03.840
conclude, we cannot talk about his passions without

00:43:03.840 --> 00:43:05.800
mentioning his absolute obsession with football.

00:43:05.980 --> 00:43:09.119
Yes, the English football team Watford FC. He

00:43:09.119 --> 00:43:10.960
has been a massive fan of the club since he was

00:43:10.960 --> 00:43:13.960
a young boy standing on the terraces. In 1976,

00:43:14.280 --> 00:43:16.199
right at the absolute peak of his global fame,

00:43:16.599 --> 00:43:18.420
he became the chairman and director of the club.

00:43:18.719 --> 00:43:21.039
And he didn't just buy it for a photo op. He

00:43:21.039 --> 00:43:23.300
invested huge sums of his own money into the

00:43:23.300 --> 00:43:25.780
club. He appointed Graham Taylor as the manager,

00:43:26.119 --> 00:43:28.400
and together they achieved a minor miracle in

00:43:28.400 --> 00:43:31.300
the sport. They took Watford, a relatively small

00:43:31.300 --> 00:43:33.440
club, up three divisions, all the way to the

00:43:33.440 --> 00:43:36.539
first division. For our American listeners, it's

00:43:36.539 --> 00:43:38.599
roughly the equivalent of taking a minor league

00:43:38.599 --> 00:43:40.639
baseball team and funding them all the way to

00:43:40.639 --> 00:43:43.059
the World Series. They even reached the FA Cup

00:43:43.059 --> 00:43:46.750
final at Wembley Stadium in 1984. For a man who

00:43:46.750 --> 00:43:49.429
travels the globe on private jets, hangs out

00:43:49.429 --> 00:43:51.710
with British royalty, and throws million -dollar

00:43:51.710 --> 00:43:55.090
Oscar parties, why invest so heavily both financially

00:43:55.090 --> 00:43:58.150
and emotionally in a local English football club?

00:43:58.480 --> 00:44:01.079
I speculate that it fundamentally grounds him

00:44:01.079 --> 00:44:03.940
to his roots. It provides a tangible, visceral

00:44:03.940 --> 00:44:05.739
connection to the working -class environment

00:44:05.739 --> 00:44:08.179
of his youth and pinner. The football pitch is

00:44:08.179 --> 00:44:10.179
a place where he isn't Sir Elton John, the global

00:44:10.179 --> 00:44:12.880
icon. He's just another frantic fan hoping his

00:44:12.880 --> 00:44:15.719
team scores a goal. It is something real, gritty,

00:44:15.880 --> 00:44:18.400
and grounded outside the insulated, luxurious

00:44:18.400 --> 00:44:22.099
bubble of global pop superstardom. Okay, bringing

00:44:22.099 --> 00:44:25.199
it all together. We have traced an absolutely

00:44:25.199 --> 00:44:27.869
incredible, sprawling arc with you today. We

00:44:27.869 --> 00:44:30.250
started with Reginald White, the quiet, anxious

00:44:30.250 --> 00:44:32.170
boy in the council house who channeled his strict

00:44:32.170 --> 00:44:34.550
classical piano training and his desperate desire

00:44:34.550 --> 00:44:36.849
to escape his home life into something extraordinary.

00:44:37.349 --> 00:44:40.489
We watched him construct the unstoppable feathered

00:44:40.489 --> 00:44:43.110
platform boot wearing force of nature that is

00:44:43.110 --> 00:44:46.070
Elton Hercules John. We've seen him transition

00:44:46.070 --> 00:44:48.349
from playing Jim Reeves covers in local pubs

00:44:48.349 --> 00:44:51.590
to selling 300 million records globally. We explored

00:44:51.590 --> 00:44:53.570
how he fought his way out of the darkest, most

00:44:53.570 --> 00:44:55.989
isolating depths of chemical addiction to reach

00:44:55.989 --> 00:44:57.829
the absolute heights of global philanthropy,

00:44:58.190 --> 00:45:00.769
saving countless lives in the process. He's a

00:45:00.769 --> 00:45:03.269
true pop culture constant, an artist who survived

00:45:03.269 --> 00:45:05.489
by never losing his profound curiosity for the

00:45:05.489 --> 00:45:09.610
new. Indeed. It is a life lived in vibrant, unforgettable

00:45:09.610 --> 00:45:12.130
color. And as we wrap up, I want to leave you

00:45:12.130 --> 00:45:14.260
with a final thought to mull over. Something

00:45:14.260 --> 00:45:16.119
we touched on earlier regarding his uniquely

00:45:16.119 --> 00:45:19.179
successful creative process. Think about Elton

00:45:19.179 --> 00:45:21.500
John and Bernie Taupin never writing a single

00:45:21.500 --> 00:45:24.320
song in the same room. We live in a world where

00:45:24.320 --> 00:45:26.860
we are constantly told that collaboration requires

00:45:26.860 --> 00:45:30.030
physical closeness. We assume it requires constant

00:45:30.030 --> 00:45:32.710
communication, arguing, hashing things out together

00:45:32.710 --> 00:45:35.389
in endless meetings. But what if the secret to

00:45:35.389 --> 00:45:38.210
lifelong legendary creative success is actually

00:45:38.210 --> 00:45:41.130
distance? What if giving your partner total,

00:45:41.250 --> 00:45:43.949
uncompromised freedom over their domain and literally

00:45:43.949 --> 00:45:46.269
stepping out of the room is the ultimate act

00:45:46.269 --> 00:45:48.750
of professional trust? The next time you have

00:45:48.750 --> 00:45:51.110
to collaborate on a massive project with a colleague

00:45:51.110 --> 00:45:53.769
or a friend, ask yourself, would this outcome

00:45:53.769 --> 00:45:55.650
actually be better if we just stayed out of each

00:45:55.650 --> 00:45:58.639
other's way? What an amazing counterintuitive

00:45:58.639 --> 00:46:00.960
thought to end on. Thank you so much for exploring

00:46:00.960 --> 00:46:02.880
these incredible sources with us on this deep

00:46:02.880 --> 00:46:05.360
dive. Keep asking those big questions. Keep looking

00:46:05.360 --> 00:46:07.400
for those surprising aha moments in the world

00:46:07.400 --> 00:46:09.579
around you. And we absolutely cannot wait to

00:46:09.579 --> 00:46:10.820
see you on our next learning journey.