WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.980 Imagine stepping in to the incredibly rigid, 00:00:03.419 --> 00:00:06.799 perfectly quiet halls of a classical music conservatory 00:00:06.799 --> 00:00:10.500 in the late 1950s. You hear the sharp, unforgiving 00:00:10.500 --> 00:00:13.779 click of metronomes. Oh yeah, just that heavy 00:00:13.779 --> 00:00:17.019 atmosphere of pure discipline. Exactly. Pristine 00:00:17.019 --> 00:00:19.960 sheet music stacked on heavy wooden stands. You 00:00:19.960 --> 00:00:22.579 feel the expectation and honestly a terrifying 00:00:22.579 --> 00:00:25.339 lack of margin for error. Right. And you would 00:00:25.339 --> 00:00:27.839 never, in a million years, look around that intensely 00:00:27.839 --> 00:00:31.079 serious room and expect it to forge a man who 00:00:31.079 --> 00:00:33.619 would one day play piano in Central Park, let 00:00:33.619 --> 00:00:35.920 alone in front of 400 ,000 screaming people. 00:00:36.119 --> 00:00:38.159 While dressed head to toe as Donald Duck, no 00:00:38.159 --> 00:00:40.399 less. Right. I mean, it is the ultimate contradiction. 00:00:40.600 --> 00:00:43.280 It really is. On one hand, you have this image 00:00:43.280 --> 00:00:45.960 of classical precision, a world where every single 00:00:45.960 --> 00:00:48.219 note is dictated by history. And on the other, 00:00:48.280 --> 00:00:50.880 you have the absolute undisputed definition of 00:00:50.880 --> 00:00:53.579 flamboyant, unpredictable rock and roll excess. 00:00:53.859 --> 00:00:56.159 And that contradiction is exactly why we are 00:00:56.159 --> 00:00:58.920 here today. We are taking a massive stack of 00:00:58.920 --> 00:01:01.560 historical and biographical material and distilling 00:01:01.560 --> 00:01:04.299 it down for you, the listener. Because our mission 00:01:04.299 --> 00:01:06.859 here isn't just to recite a list of chart -topping 00:01:06.859 --> 00:01:09.099 hits. I mean, you probably already know the melodies 00:01:09.099 --> 00:01:11.799 by heart anyway. Oh, for sure. What we are really 00:01:11.799 --> 00:01:14.760 doing is unpacking the profound duality of one 00:01:14.760 --> 00:01:17.510 of the best -selling artists of all time. We 00:01:17.510 --> 00:01:20.409 want to understand how a shy, classically trained 00:01:20.409 --> 00:01:23.650 piano prodigy named Reginald Kenneth Dwight, 00:01:24.109 --> 00:01:27.250 who was raised in a very strict home, transformed 00:01:27.250 --> 00:01:29.790 into the global icon we know as Sir Elton John. 00:01:29.989 --> 00:01:32.329 Yeah, and perhaps even more importantly, how 00:01:32.329 --> 00:01:35.250 overcoming his absolute darkest personal demons 00:01:35.250 --> 00:01:38.510 forged his legacy, not just as a musician, but 00:01:38.510 --> 00:01:41.310 as a titan of philanthropy. Okay, let's unpack 00:01:41.310 --> 00:01:44.480 this. To really grasp the sheer scale of the 00:01:44.480 --> 00:01:47.180 Elton John persona, you have to understand the 00:01:47.180 --> 00:01:49.340 constraint that necessitated it in the first 00:01:49.340 --> 00:01:51.739 place. Right, the origin story. Exactly. We have 00:01:51.739 --> 00:01:55.319 to start in Penner, Middlesex, in 1947. Reggie 00:01:55.319 --> 00:01:57.379 Dwight was raised in a council house, and his 00:01:57.379 --> 00:02:00.200 childhood was basically defined by tension. Yeah, 00:02:00.239 --> 00:02:01.920 reading the source material is pretty heavy. 00:02:02.120 --> 00:02:05.000 It is. His father was a squadron leader in the 00:02:05.000 --> 00:02:07.420 Royal Air Force. And it's clear his dad wanted 00:02:07.420 --> 00:02:10.659 a very conventional, stable, quiet life for his 00:02:10.659 --> 00:02:13.860 son. In fact, he actively pushed for Reggie to 00:02:13.860 --> 00:02:16.620 pursue a career in banking. Which is almost comical 00:02:16.620 --> 00:02:19.060 to think about now. I know, Rad. Just imagine 00:02:19.060 --> 00:02:22.539 Elton John sitting behind a gray desk approving 00:02:22.539 --> 00:02:25.259 loan applications. In a bedazzled suit. Right. 00:02:25.819 --> 00:02:28.719 But, you know... It wasn't a funny situation 00:02:28.719 --> 00:02:32.139 at the time at all. His father was largely absent 00:02:32.139 --> 00:02:34.659 due to his military service. And when he was 00:02:34.659 --> 00:02:36.939 home, the environment was incredibly hostile. 00:02:37.259 --> 00:02:39.659 Yes, his parents argued vehemently. And you can 00:02:39.659 --> 00:02:41.879 imagine the psychological toll that takes on 00:02:41.879 --> 00:02:45.000 a sensitive, observant kid. Home wasn't a sanctuary 00:02:45.000 --> 00:02:47.960 for him. It was a minefield. Exactly. That domestic 00:02:47.960 --> 00:02:50.560 tension is a crucial psychological baseline for 00:02:50.560 --> 00:02:52.520 everything that comes later. When his parents 00:02:52.520 --> 00:02:54.699 finally divorced when he was 14, it was less 00:02:54.699 --> 00:02:57.599 of a tragedy and more of a, well, A release valve. 00:02:57.819 --> 00:03:00.319 A huge relief. Totally. He was supported by his 00:03:00.319 --> 00:03:02.199 free -spirited mother and his new stepfather, 00:03:02.360 --> 00:03:05.340 a local painter named Fred Fairbrother. And Elton 00:03:05.340 --> 00:03:07.560 actually affectionately called him Durf. Which 00:03:07.560 --> 00:03:10.939 is just Fred spelled backwards, right? Yep. Durf 00:03:10.939 --> 00:03:13.680 stepped in and became the supportive, encouraging 00:03:13.680 --> 00:03:16.139 father figure that Reggie desperately needed. 00:03:16.460 --> 00:03:18.900 And during all this domestic chaos, this kid 00:03:18.900 --> 00:03:22.060 is somehow developing into a staggering musical 00:03:22.060 --> 00:03:24.860 prodigy. I mean, the stories from his early childhood 00:03:24.860 --> 00:03:27.400 sound like myths, but they are fully documented. 00:03:27.479 --> 00:03:30.199 Oh, the talent was unreal. As a young boy, he 00:03:30.199 --> 00:03:32.479 hears the skater's waltz playing in the background, 00:03:32.560 --> 00:03:35.000 just on the radio, and walks over to the piano 00:03:35.000 --> 00:03:38.939 and plays it entirely by ear. Wow. And by age 00:03:38.939 --> 00:03:41.520 11, he wins a junior scholarship to the Royal 00:03:41.520 --> 00:03:44.349 Academy of Music. Instructors there noted that 00:03:44.349 --> 00:03:47.129 he could hear a complex four -page handle piece 00:03:47.129 --> 00:03:50.050 for the very first time and just instantly play 00:03:50.050 --> 00:03:52.650 it back flawlessly, like a human gramophone record. 00:03:52.830 --> 00:03:54.729 But that kind of genius is ice -helping, you 00:03:54.729 --> 00:03:57.330 know? And here is where you see the first real 00:03:57.330 --> 00:03:59.969 sparks of that legendary rebellious streak. Yeah, 00:03:59.969 --> 00:04:02.409 he wasn't exactly the perfect student. Not at 00:04:02.409 --> 00:04:05.409 all. Despite this profound, almost alien level 00:04:05.409 --> 00:04:08.330 of classical talent, he deeply resented the Academy. 00:04:08.449 --> 00:04:10.530 The rigidity of it all just completely stifled 00:04:10.530 --> 00:04:13.439 him. He wasn't a diligent practicing his scales, 00:04:13.659 --> 00:04:15.620 he would actually frequently skip his Saturday 00:04:15.620 --> 00:04:17.879 classes just to ride around aimlessly on the 00:04:17.879 --> 00:04:19.480 London Underground. He didn't want to be Mozart, 00:04:19.500 --> 00:04:21.480 he just wanted to play rock and roll. He wanted 00:04:21.480 --> 00:04:25.300 the noise and the freedom. So at age 15, he starts 00:04:25.300 --> 00:04:27.819 playing pub piano at the Northwood Hills Hotel. 00:04:28.399 --> 00:04:30.540 He eventually forms a band called Bluesology, 00:04:30.819 --> 00:04:33.519 and this is the exact moment the alter ego is 00:04:33.519 --> 00:04:36.000 born. The big shift. Yeah, Reggie Dwight sheds 00:04:36.000 --> 00:04:39.519 his skin and legally changes his name to Elton 00:04:39.519 --> 00:04:42.829 Hercules John. Now... I know the first and last 00:04:42.829 --> 00:04:46.629 names are direct homages to his bluesology bandmates 00:04:46.629 --> 00:04:49.509 Elton Dean and Long John Baldry. But I have to 00:04:49.509 --> 00:04:51.689 ask about the middle name. Hercules. Yeah, Hercules. 00:04:51.970 --> 00:04:54.110 When I first read that, my immediate instinct 00:04:54.110 --> 00:04:56.850 was that it was a deliberate nod to the Greek 00:04:56.850 --> 00:04:59.509 god of strength. You know, a way for a shy kid 00:04:59.509 --> 00:05:02.420 to project power. Was it just... Brilliant self 00:05:02.420 --> 00:05:05.500 mythologizing you would absolutely think so given 00:05:05.500 --> 00:05:07.959 the larger -than -life indestructible persona 00:05:07.959 --> 00:05:10.660 He was trying to build but the reality is so 00:05:10.660 --> 00:05:13.360 much weirder and honestly so much more revealing 00:05:13.360 --> 00:05:15.839 Okay, he actually named himself after a horse 00:05:15.839 --> 00:05:19.019 wait really a horse Specifically a horse pulling 00:05:19.019 --> 00:05:21.860 a cart in the British sitcom steptoe and son 00:05:21.860 --> 00:05:24.300 which he was a massive fan of at the time a sitcom 00:05:24.300 --> 00:05:27.300 horse. Yeah that completely undercuts the majesty 00:05:27.300 --> 00:05:29.560 of it, but in the absolute best way possible. 00:05:29.800 --> 00:05:32.800 It really perfectly captures his quirky, deeply 00:05:32.800 --> 00:05:35.899 British sense of humor. Even when reinventing 00:05:35.899 --> 00:05:37.819 his entire identity and trying to build this 00:05:37.819 --> 00:05:41.160 impenetrable armor of rock stardom, he just couldn't 00:05:41.160 --> 00:05:44.259 resist a deeply self -deprecating inside joke. 00:05:44.519 --> 00:05:47.439 I love that so much. So Elton John now officially 00:05:47.439 --> 00:05:51.040 exists, but an alter ego needs a voice. Right. 00:05:51.180 --> 00:05:55.379 and in 1967, an A &R manager named Ray Williams 00:05:55.379 --> 00:05:59.370 hands Elton a literal, unopened envelope. Inside 00:05:59.370 --> 00:06:01.370 that envelope are lyrics written by a guy named 00:06:01.370 --> 00:06:03.389 Bernie Talpin, a complete stranger who would 00:06:03.389 --> 00:06:05.930 answer the exact same talent ad in a music paper 00:06:05.930 --> 00:06:08.730 that Elton had. The famous ad. Yeah. Elton opens 00:06:08.730 --> 00:06:11.029 the envelope, reads the words, and the trajectory 00:06:11.029 --> 00:06:13.069 of popular music is permanently altered. And 00:06:13.069 --> 00:06:15.290 what's fascinating here is the mechanics of their 00:06:15.290 --> 00:06:17.750 legendary songwriting process. They practically 00:06:17.750 --> 00:06:20.269 never write in the same room. Which is wild for 00:06:20.269 --> 00:06:22.910 a duo that successful. It is. It's the creative 00:06:22.910 --> 00:06:25.860 equivalent of parallel play. Bernie Toppin will 00:06:25.860 --> 00:06:28.160 sit down and write a batch of lyrics, often in 00:06:28.160 --> 00:06:31.319 under an hour. He hands the pages to Elton. Elton 00:06:31.319 --> 00:06:33.920 takes those lyrics, sits at the piano, and writes 00:06:33.920 --> 00:06:36.199 the melody and chord structure, usually in about 00:06:36.199 --> 00:06:38.399 half an hour. And if Elton can't figure out the 00:06:38.399 --> 00:06:41.000 music quickly, the lyrics are literally tossed 00:06:41.000 --> 00:06:43.319 in the bin. They don't agonize over it at all. 00:06:43.399 --> 00:06:45.779 They don't spend three weeks in a studio screaming 00:06:45.779 --> 00:06:47.980 at each other about a bridge or a chorus. It's 00:06:47.980 --> 00:06:50.839 just a magical assembly line. But beyond the 00:06:50.839 --> 00:06:52.879 speed, think about the psychology of why this 00:06:52.879 --> 00:06:55.810 works so perfectly. By never being in the same 00:06:55.810 --> 00:06:58.629 room, they completely remove the ego from the 00:06:58.629 --> 00:07:00.589 equation. That's a great point. Bernie isn't 00:07:00.589 --> 00:07:02.550 hovering over the piano telling Elton how to 00:07:02.550 --> 00:07:05.470 play, and Elton isn't analyzing Benny's poetry 00:07:05.470 --> 00:07:08.089 line by line. And that separation of powers is 00:07:08.089 --> 00:07:11.290 exactly why it survived. Over 50 years. More 00:07:11.290 --> 00:07:13.810 than 30 albums. That longevity is insane. Right. 00:07:13.910 --> 00:07:17.089 In an industry literally defined by bitter, litigious, 00:07:17.129 --> 00:07:19.629 creative breakups. I mean think of The Beatles 00:07:19.629 --> 00:07:22.490 or Pink Floyd Elton and Bernie have publicly 00:07:22.490 --> 00:07:25.490 claimed to never, ever have had a professional 00:07:25.490 --> 00:07:28.189 or personal argument. That is just unheard of. 00:07:28.490 --> 00:07:30.750 Complete creative separations somehow resulted 00:07:30.750 --> 00:07:33.509 in perfect harmony. And you really cannot argue 00:07:33.509 --> 00:07:37.310 with the results. By 1970... Your song breaks 00:07:37.310 --> 00:07:40.230 through. He plays a now -legendary U .S. debut 00:07:40.230 --> 00:07:42.790 at the Dinobredor in Los Angeles, and the rocket 00:07:42.790 --> 00:07:45.370 ship officially leaves the atmosphere. We are 00:07:45.370 --> 00:07:47.569 talking about a level of market dominance that 00:07:47.569 --> 00:07:50.420 is... difficult to fully comprehend today. Oh, 00:07:50.420 --> 00:07:55.060 totally. Between 1972 and 1975, he achieved seven 00:07:55.060 --> 00:07:57.819 consecutive number one albums in the United States. 00:07:58.279 --> 00:08:00.060 That was a feat that had never been accomplished 00:08:00.060 --> 00:08:01.959 in the history of the Billboard charts prior 00:08:01.959 --> 00:08:04.019 to that moment. Just to put into perspective 00:08:04.019 --> 00:08:06.420 what kind of commodity he became, you guys. In 00:08:06.420 --> 00:08:10.540 1974, MCA Records took out a 25 million dollar 00:08:10.540 --> 00:08:13.019 insurance policy on his life. Which was a staggering 00:08:13.019 --> 00:08:15.160 amount of money back then. Right. When a corporation 00:08:15.160 --> 00:08:18.420 values your literal breathing body, at $25 million 00:08:18.420 --> 00:08:22.319 in 1974 money, you sort of stop being a human 00:08:22.319 --> 00:08:24.779 being to them. You become a walking economy. 00:08:24.939 --> 00:08:27.079 And how do you cope with that? You hide. Exactly, 00:08:27.079 --> 00:08:31.040 you hide. With that stratospheric fame came the 00:08:31.040 --> 00:08:34.440 stage persona, the $5 ,000 glasses that spelled 00:08:34.440 --> 00:08:37.019 his name in lights, dressing up as the Statue 00:08:37.019 --> 00:08:40.799 of Liberty, or... Mozart. Or, as we mentioned 00:08:40.799 --> 00:08:43.059 right at the top, playing that 1980s Central 00:08:43.059 --> 00:08:46.220 Park concert to 400 ,000 people wearing a massive 00:08:46.220 --> 00:08:48.580 Donald Duck costume. And if we connect this to 00:08:48.580 --> 00:08:50.779 the bigger picture, you might look at those outfits 00:08:50.779 --> 00:08:53.179 in the archival footage and just see the absolute 00:08:53.179 --> 00:08:56.000 peak of 1970s rock excess. You might think it 00:08:56.000 --> 00:08:58.620 was just a brilliant, cynical marketing gimmick 00:08:58.620 --> 00:09:01.919 to stand out in an era of really flashy rock 00:09:01.919 --> 00:09:03.399 stars. Which would be the logical assumption. 00:09:03.500 --> 00:09:05.980 Sure. But Elton himself has explicitly stated 00:09:05.980 --> 00:09:08.649 that those wild costumes performances were his 00:09:08.649 --> 00:09:11.149 way of finally letting go after a highly restrictive, 00:09:11.730 --> 00:09:14.230 emotionally stunted childhood. Ah, so the feathers, 00:09:14.389 --> 00:09:17.049 the giant glasses, the outrageous platform boots. 00:09:17.590 --> 00:09:19.669 It wasn't just theater, it was psychological 00:09:19.669 --> 00:09:23.029 armor. Precisely. Reggie Dwight was a shy, insecure 00:09:23.029 --> 00:09:25.230 boy who felt out of place and deeply unloved 00:09:25.230 --> 00:09:28.549 by his father. But Elton John, wrapped in sequins 00:09:28.549 --> 00:09:31.549 in a Donald Duck suit, was untouchable. The costume 00:09:31.549 --> 00:09:33.330 allowed him to step completely out of his own 00:09:33.330 --> 00:09:36.500 vulnerability. Exactly, but the fundamental problem 00:09:36.500 --> 00:09:39.320 with armor is that it is incredibly heavy, and 00:09:39.320 --> 00:09:41.419 eventually you have to take it off. Escaping 00:09:41.419 --> 00:09:43.220 your childhood trauma isn't as simple as just 00:09:43.220 --> 00:09:46.519 putting on a costume. No, it never is. By 1975, 00:09:46.779 --> 00:09:49.860 during a massive, exhausting Elton Week celebration 00:09:49.860 --> 00:09:53.700 in Los Angeles, the armor finally cracks. He 00:09:53.700 --> 00:09:57.659 suffers a severe cocaine overdose, and concurrently, 00:09:57.840 --> 00:10:00.629 he's battling bulimia. The extreme heights of 00:10:00.629 --> 00:10:04.710 the 1970s inevitably led to a profound life -threatening 00:10:04.710 --> 00:10:07.129 crash. And his personal life during this era 00:10:07.129 --> 00:10:09.830 heavily reflects that immense internal chaos. 00:10:09.929 --> 00:10:12.629 He's bouncing between relationships, desperately 00:10:12.629 --> 00:10:15.710 looking for a stabilizing force, but completely 00:10:15.710 --> 00:10:17.940 unable to maintain one. It was a really dark 00:10:17.940 --> 00:10:20.700 period. In the late 1960s, he was briefly engaged 00:10:20.700 --> 00:10:23.059 to a woman named Linda Woodrow. And actually, 00:10:23.360 --> 00:10:25.659 as a testament to his underlying character, the 00:10:25.659 --> 00:10:27.740 sources note he stepped in to help her financially 00:10:27.740 --> 00:10:30.220 50 years later. Wow, that's really something. 00:10:30.340 --> 00:10:32.480 But back then, the engagement fell apart. He 00:10:32.480 --> 00:10:35.080 then had a highly volatile five -year romantic 00:10:35.080 --> 00:10:37.200 and professional relationship with his manager, 00:10:37.519 --> 00:10:40.000 John Reed. The search for identity was basically 00:10:40.000 --> 00:10:42.620 tearing him apart. I mean, he publicly came out 00:10:42.620 --> 00:10:45.820 as bisexual in a 1976 interview, which was highly 00:10:45.820 --> 00:10:47.919 controversial at the time. Incredibly risky back 00:10:47.919 --> 00:10:50.320 then. But the internal struggle didn't end there. 00:10:50.899 --> 00:10:53.860 In 1984, in what many saw as a desperate attempt 00:10:53.860 --> 00:10:56.620 to find normalcy, he married a German recording 00:10:56.620 --> 00:10:59.740 engineer named Renate Blauel. It was a tragic 00:10:59.740 --> 00:11:02.360 situation for both of them. Yeah, that was heartbreaking 00:11:02.360 --> 00:11:04.909 to read about. The marriage ended four years 00:11:04.909 --> 00:11:07.830 later and included a devastating suicide attempt 00:11:07.830 --> 00:11:10.850 by Blauel on their honeymoon. He was a gay man 00:11:10.850 --> 00:11:12.850 trying to force himself into a heteronormative 00:11:12.850 --> 00:11:15.230 box while under the absolute brightest spotlight 00:11:15.230 --> 00:11:18.610 on earth. The pressure was unimaginable. It wasn't 00:11:18.610 --> 00:11:21.389 until 1992 that he finally stated he was completely 00:11:21.389 --> 00:11:24.269 comfortable being a gay man. So he reached his 00:11:24.269 --> 00:11:27.289 absolute breaking point in the late 1980s. But 00:11:27.289 --> 00:11:28.850 here's where it gets really interesting for you 00:11:28.850 --> 00:11:31.909 listening. Because his path to sobriety in 1990 00:11:31.909 --> 00:11:34.309 wasn't just a standard rock star goes to rehab 00:11:34.309 --> 00:11:37.090 story. Not at all. It was triggered by two very 00:11:37.090 --> 00:11:40.029 specific, very unexpected catalysts that pierced 00:11:40.029 --> 00:11:42.789 right through all that armor. A teenager and 00:11:42.789 --> 00:11:46.419 a song. Yes. The first catalyst was a boy named 00:11:46.419 --> 00:11:49.580 Ryan White. Ryan was a teenage hemophiliac in 00:11:49.580 --> 00:11:52.240 Indiana who contracted AIDS through a contaminated 00:11:52.240 --> 00:11:55.100 blood transfusion. Such a tragic story. Truly. 00:11:55.440 --> 00:11:58.299 He became a national poster child for HIV and 00:11:58.299 --> 00:12:00.559 AIDS education after being expelled from his 00:12:00.559 --> 00:12:03.299 middle school due to his infection. Elton befriended 00:12:03.299 --> 00:12:05.419 him and actually spent a significant amount of 00:12:05.419 --> 00:12:07.720 time with Ryan's family before the boy's tragic 00:12:07.720 --> 00:12:10.679 death in 1990. You just have to imagine the stark 00:12:10.679 --> 00:12:14.139 contrast there. Elton John a man with limitless 00:12:14.139 --> 00:12:17.279 wealth and resources, actively destroying himself 00:12:17.279 --> 00:12:20.080 in Hollywood hotel rooms, suddenly sitting in 00:12:20.080 --> 00:12:22.259 a modest home in Indiana with a teenager who 00:12:22.259 --> 00:12:25.100 is fighting with unimaginable grace just to stay 00:12:25.100 --> 00:12:27.360 alive. It shattered him. But in the best way 00:12:27.360 --> 00:12:29.659 possible, Elton later stated plainly that if 00:12:29.659 --> 00:12:31.539 it weren't for the White family, he would probably 00:12:31.539 --> 00:12:34.039 be dead. Wow. Seeing their dignity in the face 00:12:34.039 --> 00:12:36.799 of such profound, unfair tragedy forced him to 00:12:36.799 --> 00:12:39.080 look in the mirror at his own destructive, entitled 00:12:39.080 --> 00:12:41.860 behavior. He realized he was wasting the very 00:12:41.860 --> 00:12:44.580 life that Ryan was begging to keep. The second 00:12:44.580 --> 00:12:47.240 catalyst was music itself. Not his own music, 00:12:47.580 --> 00:12:50.580 but a 1986 duet by Kate Bush and Peter Gabriel 00:12:50.580 --> 00:12:53.580 called Don't Give Up. Yeah, Elton credits a very 00:12:53.580 --> 00:12:56.419 specific vocal delivery by Kate Bush in that 00:12:56.419 --> 00:12:58.840 song for playing a major part in his rebirth. 00:12:59.759 --> 00:13:02.779 The lyric is simple, but devastatingly empathetic. 00:13:02.879 --> 00:13:05.379 She sings, rest your head. You worry too much. 00:13:05.500 --> 00:13:07.200 It's going to be all right. It's a beautiful 00:13:07.200 --> 00:13:09.490 line. He has stated on the record that hearing 00:13:09.490 --> 00:13:12.490 that specific song with that specific message 00:13:12.490 --> 00:13:15.169 of unconditional comfort helped save his life. 00:13:15.490 --> 00:13:16.870 I think that's something you can probably relate 00:13:16.870 --> 00:13:19.889 to even without the whole Rockstar context. It 00:13:19.889 --> 00:13:22.590 reminds us that sometimes salvation doesn't come 00:13:22.590 --> 00:13:26.090 from sheer grinding willpower alone. It comes 00:13:26.090 --> 00:13:28.570 from outside ourselves. Exactly. It comes through 00:13:28.570 --> 00:13:30.870 the profound empathy of a stranger's family or 00:13:30.870 --> 00:13:32.769 the exact right lyric hitting you at the exact 00:13:32.769 --> 00:13:34.830 right moment when you're finally ready to hear 00:13:34.830 --> 00:13:36.929 it. It is a profound testament to the power of 00:13:36.929 --> 00:13:39.509 our and human connection. He absorbed the empathy 00:13:39.509 --> 00:13:41.669 he received from Ryan White and from Kate Bush 00:13:41.669 --> 00:13:44.470 and it fundamentally rewired him. He finally 00:13:44.470 --> 00:13:47.769 got sober in 1990. And there is this beautiful 00:13:47.769 --> 00:13:50.309 almost poetic symmetry to the second half of 00:13:50.309 --> 00:13:53.350 his life because art and a tragic illness saved 00:13:53.350 --> 00:13:55.860 him from himself. So what does he do with his 00:13:55.860 --> 00:13:58.360 second chance? He dedicates the rest of his life 00:13:58.360 --> 00:14:00.679 to saving others from that exact same illness. 00:14:00.919 --> 00:14:03.519 The transformation from a self -destructive rock 00:14:03.519 --> 00:14:06.659 star to a global humanitarian is really striking. 00:14:06.919 --> 00:14:09.000 Following the deaths of Ryan White and then his 00:14:09.000 --> 00:14:12.620 close friend Freddie Mercury in 1991, he channeled 00:14:12.620 --> 00:14:15.480 all his grief and newfound clarity into action. 00:14:15.700 --> 00:14:17.600 He didn't just write a check. He built an institution. 00:14:17.700 --> 00:14:20.100 Right. He established the Elton John AIDS Foundation 00:14:20.100 --> 00:14:23.500 in 1992. And to date, that foundation has raised 00:14:23.500 --> 00:14:26.580 over $600 million globally to combat the disease, 00:14:27.139 --> 00:14:29.360 fund research, and fight the stigma. He became 00:14:29.360 --> 00:14:31.740 a pillar of strength, not just for the marginalized, 00:14:31.860 --> 00:14:34.600 but for the entire world. We saw this on an unprecedented 00:14:34.600 --> 00:14:38.440 global scale in 1997. Within just a few months, 00:14:38.840 --> 00:14:40.899 he endured the devastating murders of his close 00:14:40.899 --> 00:14:43.779 friend Gianni Versace and then the sudden, shocking 00:14:43.779 --> 00:14:46.539 death of Princess Diana. Such a heavy year. In 00:14:46.539 --> 00:14:49.039 the midst of that global mourning, he asked Bernie 00:14:49.039 --> 00:14:51.200 Taupin to rewrite the lyrics to Candle in the 00:14:51.200 --> 00:14:53.960 Wind. His performance at Diana's funeral was 00:14:53.960 --> 00:14:57.179 watched by billions of people. That single sold 00:14:57.179 --> 00:15:00.080 33 million copies, becoming the best -selling 00:15:00.080 --> 00:15:02.820 chart single of all time. He took the world's 00:15:02.820 --> 00:15:05.299 grief and gave it a melody. And as he became 00:15:05.299 --> 00:15:07.480 a stabilizing force in the world, his personal 00:15:07.480 --> 00:15:10.320 life finally found the deep, quiet stability 00:15:10.320 --> 00:15:12.539 he had lacked since he was a little boy and pinner. 00:15:12.620 --> 00:15:15.059 Full circle. He entered a civil partnership in 00:15:15.059 --> 00:15:18.279 2005 and later legally married filmmaker David 00:15:18.279 --> 00:15:21.720 Furnish in 2014. Together they have two sons 00:15:21.720 --> 00:15:24.840 via surrogacy. The man who grew up in a fractured, 00:15:25.000 --> 00:15:27.580 angry home finally built a solid, loving one. 00:15:27.759 --> 00:15:29.899 And professionally, he just refuses to slow down. 00:15:30.240 --> 00:15:33.259 In 2024, he achieved EGOT status. That is an 00:15:33.259 --> 00:15:35.539 incredibly rare club. Winning an Emmy for his 00:15:35.539 --> 00:15:38.039 Dodger Stadium farewell special, adding to his 00:15:38.039 --> 00:15:41.019 Oscars, Grammys and Tony Awards. He also became 00:15:41.019 --> 00:15:43.600 the first solo artist ever to have UK top 10 00:15:43.600 --> 00:15:46.100 singles across six different decades. Which brings 00:15:46.100 --> 00:15:49.019 us to his highly active modern era. We see a 00:15:49.019 --> 00:15:51.419 man who remains a fiercely vocal and complex 00:15:51.419 --> 00:15:54.649 public figure. he refuses to be easily categorized. 00:15:55.070 --> 00:15:57.429 For instance, the sources note he was heavily 00:15:57.429 --> 00:16:00.750 active in politics in 2024. He campaigned for 00:16:00.750 --> 00:16:03.590 Joe Biden in the U .S. and publicly endorsed 00:16:03.590 --> 00:16:05.970 labor leader Keir Starmer in the U .K. Right. 00:16:06.090 --> 00:16:08.710 He threw his considerable cultural weight behind 00:16:08.710 --> 00:16:11.730 them. But it's interesting because the text shows 00:16:11.730 --> 00:16:15.679 his loyalties are entirely issue based. We're 00:16:15.679 --> 00:16:17.299 just looking at the facts here, not taking any 00:16:17.299 --> 00:16:20.039 political side. But he doesn't just blindly follow 00:16:20.039 --> 00:16:23.360 a party line. Exactly. Because by early 2025, 00:16:24.179 --> 00:16:27.120 he fiercely and publicly clashed with that exact 00:16:27.120 --> 00:16:30.340 same UK Labour government. Oh, wow. Yeah. He 00:16:30.340 --> 00:16:33.019 stated he felt deeply betrayed over their legislative 00:16:33.019 --> 00:16:36.080 plans to exempt AI technology firms from certain 00:16:36.080 --> 00:16:39.179 copyright laws. He really stepped up as a legacy 00:16:39.179 --> 00:16:41.299 artist defending intellectual property. Which 00:16:41.299 --> 00:16:44.110 makes sense for a songwriter. Right. And furthermore, 00:16:44.330 --> 00:16:47.450 in late 2024, he took a very firm stance against 00:16:47.450 --> 00:16:50.090 the legalization of cannabis. Which, you know, 00:16:50.190 --> 00:16:51.929 might surprise a lot of people, given his rock 00:16:51.929 --> 00:16:53.710 and roll pedigree. Again, we're not endorsing 00:16:53.710 --> 00:16:56.350 or criticizing the stance, just conveying what 00:16:56.350 --> 00:16:59.190 the material says. Totally. And he views it strictly 00:16:59.190 --> 00:17:01.850 through the lens of his own trauma. He cited 00:17:01.850 --> 00:17:04.869 his severe past struggles with addiction, calling 00:17:04.869 --> 00:17:07.450 the push for cannabis legalization one of the 00:17:07.450 --> 00:17:10.279 greatest mistakes of our time. He is entirely 00:17:10.279 --> 00:17:12.759 unafraid to speak his mind or upset his own fan 00:17:12.759 --> 00:17:15.220 base, regardless of where the opinion falls on 00:17:15.220 --> 00:17:17.279 the political spectrum. Well, he has certainly 00:17:17.279 --> 00:17:21.099 earned the right to his convictions. But beyond 00:17:21.099 --> 00:17:23.119 his outspokenness, we really have to look at 00:17:23.119 --> 00:17:25.339 his sheer physical resilience in these recent 00:17:25.339 --> 00:17:28.440 years. It's unbelievable. In 2023, he completed 00:17:28.440 --> 00:17:31.480 the Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour, which at 00:17:31.480 --> 00:17:33.480 the time became the highest grossing tour in 00:17:33.480 --> 00:17:36.750 the history of music. Then, in late 2024, he 00:17:36.750 --> 00:17:39.450 reveals some incredibly tough health news. A 00:17:39.450 --> 00:17:41.609 severe eye infection left him completely blind 00:17:41.609 --> 00:17:44.109 in his right eye, with only limited compromised 00:17:44.109 --> 00:17:46.809 vision in his left. And a diagnosis of severe 00:17:46.809 --> 00:17:49.049 vision loss would permanently sideline almost 00:17:49.049 --> 00:17:51.569 anyone, especially an artist in their late 70s 00:17:51.569 --> 00:17:53.789 who had just finished a grueling farewell tour. 00:17:54.410 --> 00:17:56.710 His drive is seemingly endless. He just keeps 00:17:56.710 --> 00:17:59.369 going. Despite the physical limitations, he made 00:17:59.369 --> 00:18:01.549 a surprise piano performance at the New York 00:18:01.549 --> 00:18:05.029 Film Festival in October 2024. And incredibly, 00:18:05.390 --> 00:18:08.630 exactly a year later, in October 2025, he was 00:18:08.630 --> 00:18:11.910 back on a massive stage playing to over 70 ,000 00:18:11.910 --> 00:18:14.250 people at the Singapore Grand Prix. It's astounding. 00:18:14.460 --> 00:18:16.319 You really can't keep him away from the piano. 00:18:16.839 --> 00:18:19.779 And crucially, he doesn't just sit back and rest 00:18:19.779 --> 00:18:22.220 on a legendary back catalog of hits from the 00:18:22.220 --> 00:18:24.900 70s and 80s. And this raises an important question 00:18:24.900 --> 00:18:28.059 about how creative minds age. Elton John's relevance 00:18:28.059 --> 00:18:30.440 today isn't just driven by cure nostalgia. He 00:18:30.440 --> 00:18:33.180 actively, hungrily seeks out collaborations with 00:18:33.180 --> 00:18:36.079 young, cutting edge artists. People like Lorde, 00:18:36.200 --> 00:18:38.279 Billie Eilish, and Dua Lipa. He's always listening 00:18:38.279 --> 00:18:41.059 to what's new. He even hosts a radio show specifically 00:18:41.059 --> 00:18:43.990 to champion new music from unknown bands. He 00:18:43.990 --> 00:18:46.470 has explicitly said that listening to and working 00:18:46.470 --> 00:18:48.490 with young artists is what keeps his own mind 00:18:48.490 --> 00:18:51.450 sharp. He proves definitively that staying endlessly 00:18:51.450 --> 00:18:54.150 curious is the ultimate antidote to aging. So 00:18:54.150 --> 00:18:56.490 what does this all mean for us? Let's look back 00:18:56.490 --> 00:18:58.569 at this incredible arc we've explored today. 00:18:59.410 --> 00:19:02.500 We started with Reggie Dwight. originally constrained 00:19:02.500 --> 00:19:05.259 brilliant piano prodigy who was terrified of 00:19:05.259 --> 00:19:07.420 his father and just wanted to break free and 00:19:07.420 --> 00:19:10.480 play rock music. Yeah. We saw him strap on the 00:19:10.480 --> 00:19:13.119 heavy feathered armor of his alter ego Elton 00:19:13.119 --> 00:19:16.339 John, riding a rocket ship of unprecedented thumb 00:19:16.339 --> 00:19:19.119 while running desperately from his own internal 00:19:19.119 --> 00:19:22.140 demons, which led to a catastrophic physical 00:19:22.140 --> 00:19:24.619 and emotional crash. And then we witnessed his 00:19:24.619 --> 00:19:28.240 profound rebirth. A rebirth sparked not by industry 00:19:28.240 --> 00:19:30.900 handlers, but by the kindness of a grieving family 00:19:30.900 --> 00:19:33.380 in Indiana and the empathetic lyrics of a pop 00:19:33.380 --> 00:19:35.819 song. So true. From there, he transformed into 00:19:35.819 --> 00:19:38.960 a grounded, philanthropic powerhouse. He achieved 00:19:38.960 --> 00:19:41.900 the rare EGOT. built a beautiful, stable family, 00:19:42.220 --> 00:19:44.660 and outlasted nearly all of his peers, all while 00:19:44.660 --> 00:19:46.880 keeping his ears wide open to the next generation 00:19:46.880 --> 00:19:49.059 of sound. It really makes you think about the 00:19:49.059 --> 00:19:51.079 butterfly effect in our own lives, you know, 00:19:51.400 --> 00:19:54.519 the tiny, seemingly insignificant moments that 00:19:54.519 --> 00:19:57.400 changed the entire course of life. Which brings 00:19:57.400 --> 00:19:59.099 me to a final thought I want to leave you with 00:19:59.099 --> 00:20:02.619 today. Think about this, Elton John's entire 00:20:02.619 --> 00:20:06.319 monumental career, the 300 million records sold, 00:20:06.859 --> 00:20:09.480 the 600 million dollars raised for AIDS research. 00:20:09.990 --> 00:20:12.490 The endless, unforgettable melodies that have 00:20:12.490 --> 00:20:14.609 soundtracked weddings and funerals for half a 00:20:14.609 --> 00:20:17.410 century. All of it. All of it. The entire Elton 00:20:17.410 --> 00:20:20.210 John universe was ignited by a random, unopened 00:20:20.210 --> 00:20:23.210 envelope of lyrics from a total stranger. It 00:20:23.210 --> 00:20:25.950 makes you wonder what unopened envelopes, literal 00:20:25.950 --> 00:20:28.490 or metaphorical, are sitting on your desk right 00:20:28.490 --> 00:20:30.809 now just waiting for you to add the music. A 00:20:30.809 --> 00:20:32.890 powerful question to carry with you. Thanks for 00:20:32.890 --> 00:20:35.329 joining us on this Deep Dive. Stay curious, keep 00:20:35.329 --> 00:20:36.890 listening, and we'll see you next time.