Elton John: Radio stations won’t play my music because I’m too old
Sir Elton John (Getty)
Sir Elton John has hit out at the radio industry for refusing to play his music because he’s too old.
The veteran singer, who turns 70 this year, made the claims to biographer Tom Doyle in an interview for Captain Fantastic: Elton John’s Stellar Trip Through the ’70s, due out later this month.
According to HeatStreet, he told Doyle that his music no longer makes it onto the airwaves in the States because of ageism.
He said: “There comes a point where you have to admit that you’re not gonna get played on the radio in America because it’s ageist.
“There’s a whole stream of different music come along now. And you have to face up to it.”
Madonna made similar claims in 2015, explaining stations including BBC Radio 1 stopped playing her music as she got older.
In 2012, BBC Radio 1 DJ Scott Mills had said in a PinkNews interview that Madonna was “not relevant” to 17-year-olds.
Madonna said: “My manager said to me, ‘If you’re not in your twenties, it’s hard. You might get your record played in your thirties.
“There’s a handful of people who do – Pharrell [who is 41] got lucky. But if you’re in your fifties, you can forget it.”
She added: “We’ve made so many advances in other areas – civil rights, gay rights – but ageism is still an area that’s taboo and not talked about and dealt with.”
Sir Elton previously discussed winding down his career to spend more time with his family.
He said: “I’m working on a musical, but I can’t tell you about that yet… and then I’m working on another musical after.”
“Obviously I work – but the work will get less and less and I’ll spend more time with my children growing up.
“And that’s what I want to do, I’ll gradually phase things out in a few years. It’s not forever but I want to see my kids grow up. I go all over the world. I just don’t want to tour so much.
“At the moment, it’s just about when the boys are out of school and how much we can spend with them.”
The identity of the secret musical project was revealed last month.
