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PRESS RELEASE SOURCE: DISNEY+
Photo Credit: Ben Gibson for Rocket Entertainment
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Global superstar Elton John made music history with “Elton John Live: Farewell from Dodger Stadium,” his final North American concert, which was livestreamed exclusively on Disney+ earlier this week.
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In one of the greatest send-offs of all time, artists, entertainers and special guests, along with a packed stadium of fans and admirers worldwide, celebrated the music legend’s epic full-circle moment at Dodger Stadium, paying tribute to his 1975 performance that cemented his global success.
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The three-hour concert event, from Disney Branded Television and produced by Fulwell 73 Productions and Rocket Entertainment, gave Disney+ audiences a front-row seat to his electrifying and legendary performance, which included Bennie and the Jets, Tiny Dancer, I’m Still Standing, Crocodile Rock and Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.
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GRAMMYⓇ-winning artists Dua Lipa, Kiki Dee and Brandi Carlile each honored Elton John on stage with duet performances of Cold Heart, Don’t Go Breaking My Heart and Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me, respectively.
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Attendees and notable guests included Dua Lipa, Kiki Dee, Brandi Carlile, Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger, Taron Egerton, Bernie Taupin, Jude Law, Billie Jean King, H.E.R, Donatella Versace, Angela Bassett, Courtney B. Vance, Miles Teller, Jude Law, Heidi Klum, Joni Mitchell, JoJo Siwa, Neil Patrick Harris, Christopher Lloyd, Connie Britton, Kirsten Dunst, Jenna Dewan, John Stamos, Lucy Hale, Raven Simone, Sara Gilbert, Sophia Bush, Erick McCormack, Lisa Rinna, Diana Jenkins, Reed Horstmann and more.
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As part of Elton John’s “Farewell Yellow Brick Road” tour, presented by Alliance for Lifetime Income, Elton John performed 183 shows across the United States and Canada. His final home stretch at Dodger Stadium on November 17, 19 and 20 was attended in person by more than 140,000 fans. Gucci refashioned his sparkly 1975 Dodger uniform into a robe, and Bob Mackie recreated his iconic Dodger cap.
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About Elton John
Elton’s career achievements to date are unsurpassed in their breadth and longevity. Elton is one of the top-selling solo artists of all time. In the UK and US charts alone he has 1 diamond, 32 platinum or multi-platinum, and 21 gold albums as well as over 70 Top 40 hits. He has sold more than 300 million records worldwide.
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He holds the record for the biggest-selling single of all time, “Candle in the Wind 1997”, which sold over 33 million copies. Released in 2017 ‘Diamonds’ the Ultimate Greatest Hits album, became Elton’s 40th UK Top 40 album and has spent over 200 consecutive weeks in the top 75 of the UK album charts, over 110 of these in the top 20, and in August 2022 surpassed the threshold for 1 million combined chart unites in the UK. This release celebrated 50 years of his songwriting partnership with Bernie Taupin. August 2018 saw Elton named as the most successful male solo artist in Billboard Hot 100 chart history. At present, he has logged 70 Billboard Hot 100 entries, including nine No. 1s and 28 Top 10s.
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‘The Lockdown Sessions’, an album of collaborations recorded during the COVID-19 Pandemic, was released in October 2021 and went straight to number 1 in the UK album Charts, becoming Elton’s 8th UK number 1 album in the process. Its lead single “Cold Heart (PNAU Remix) with Dua Lipa” became a bona fide global hit, reaching number 1 in the UK and Australian singles charts. Its success meant that Elton became the first ever solo artist to score a UK Top 10 hit single in 6 consecutive decades.
His most recent release, “Hold Me Closer,” featuring Britney Spears debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart, providing Elton with his tenth Top 10 hit. The song also climbed to #1 in Australia and Canada, #3 in the UK, and most notable, #1 on iTunes in over 40 countries upon release. In America, Elton John holds the record for longest span between Billboard top 40 hits at 50 years.
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Elton announced the ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour at New York’s Gotham Hall in January 2018. Encompassing 5 continents, and over 350 dates, this 5-year-long tour started in September 2018 and marks his retirement from touring after more than 50 years on the road. In 2019 it was named Billboard’s Top Rock Tour and Pollstar’s Major Tour Of The Year. To date, Elton has delivered more than 4,000 performances in more than 80 countries since launching his first tour in 1970. 2019 also saw the release of ‘Rocketman’ and global bestselling autobiography, ‘ME’.
An epic fantasy musical motion picture of Elton’s life, ‘Rocketman’ has been a commercial and critical hit, taking close to $200m at the box office. It has won an Oscar, two Golden Globe Awards and a Critics’ Choice Award and garnered BAFTA nominations. Its soundtrack was also nominated for a GRAMMY Award.
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Among the many awards and honors bestowed upon him are six GRAMMYs, including a GRAMMY Legend award, a Tony and two Oscars, a Best British Male Artist BRIT Award, induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Kennedy Center Honor, Legend of Live Award, 13 Ivor Novello Awards between 1973 and 2001 and a knighthood from HM Queen Elizabeth II for “services to music and charitable services”. Most recently, Elton was awarded the 2021 iHeartRadio “Golden Icon” Award in recognition of his incredible influence on music and pop culture. In February 2022, he topped the inaugural Pollstar Artist Power Index, a weekly rank of the world’s most popular artists based on streaming, touring, airplay, and social media metrics.
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In 1992, Elton established the Elton John AIDS Foundation, which today is one of the leading non-profit HIV/AIDS organizations and has raised over $515 million to date in the global fight against HIV/AIDS. In June 2019 President Emmanuel Macron presented Elton the Légion d’honneur, France’s highest award, for his lifetime contribution to the arts and the fight against HIV/AIDS. Elton was awarded the Companion of Honor in the 2021 New Year Honors list. The highest acknowledgement in the list, Elton became one of only 64 people to hold the honor. September 2019 saw The Royal Mail issue a set of 12 stamps as a tribute to Elton being one of the most popular and enduring music artists of all time.
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Elton was only the second individual music artist to be featured in a dedicated stamp issue. In July 2020 the Royal Mint released an Elton John commemorative coin, the second in their music legends series to celebrate ‘one of the most successful and enduring artists of all time’. Always a tireless champion of new artists, Elton has been a leading industry voice in lobbying the government for young artists visa-free touring rights in Europe post Brexit.
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