Sir Elton John is taking a "scary leap of faith" by retiring from touring because he always thought he'd die onstage.
The Rocket Man icon announced his plans for the three-year Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour at a special event in New York City on Wednesday (24Jan18), revealing he wanted to scale back his music career to spend more time with his husband, David Furnish, and their two young sons, Zachary, seven, and Elijah, five.
"I'm determined to go out with a bang, and I just feel very joyous about the opportunity to go round the world and play and say thank you to all the fans that I've had," he told U.S. breakfast show Good Morning America on Thursday (25Jan18).
Elton, 70, never imagined he would give up the opportunity to hit the road, but fatherhood has made him reevaluate his priorities in recent years.
"Before the children, I thought this is going to be what I'm doing until the day I die," he said, "but I don't want to be travelling away from my children; they need me, I need them much more than another tour or doing another show.
"Our boys came into our life at a late time. I've never experienced anything like it, being a father and being a parent, and there's no contest; I'd rather be with my children than still be playing shows. That's a very easy decision to make."
The rocker insists he will "still be making music", but he had to go with his "gut feeling" to give up his touring life - because it hasn't steered him wrong before.
Citing his work on Disney's animated 1994 hit The Lion King, he explained, "I was so lucky. That completely changed my life. Certain things like that have happened at certain times in my career, where one phone call, one decision, one gut feeling has made my life better. This is the same sort of gut feeling that I had when I said yes to doing The Lion King as I do a farewell tour (sic)."
However, Elton admits the idea of never touring again is a little unsettling as a lifelong entertainer: "It's called a leap of faith, and a leap of faith is scary, but there's no enjoyment in life without a bit of fear," he reasoned. "And I've always tried to push myself through it."
The legendary musician will kick off his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour in Pennsylvania in September (18), and although he has so far only released dates until 2019, he already knows where the trek will end.
"I want my last performance to be in America," he shared, "because this is where I got my start, and I owe this country so much and I'm so fond of this country that I want to start and finish in America."
