Singer's no longer looking for chart success...
Jason Gregory

10:59 1st November 2010

More about:

Sir Elton John has said he is no longer capable of writing songs that will compete with contemporary pop stars.


The veteran singer, who has enjoyed almost 70 top-40 singles, said he now preferred to do side-projects.

"Look, I'm 63, I don't want to be on VH1 or MTV," he told GQ magazine. "I'm not going to compete with JLS or Lady Gaga.

"I'm at that stage where I don't think I can write pop music any more. I can't sit down and do a proper rock song."

Sir Elton added: "I like to do my little side projects like Scissor Sisters and have fun, but I don't think Elton John will be putting any pop singles out."

The singer performed with Plan B at the Roundhouse in London last week as part of the BBC Radio 2 Electric Proms.

His new album 'The Union', with Leon Russell, debuted at number 12 on the UK album charts at the weekend.

Lady Gaga - From Unknown Stefani Germanotta To Pop Megastar

  • Way before Lady Gaga, Stefani Germanotta as a young girl taking first communion in second grade at age of seven

  • Seven-year-old Stefani Germanotta sitting at her piano in 1993.

  • Lady Gaga wearing sunglasses in Halloween 2000, age 14. At the time she was a student of the exclusive Convent of the Sacred Heart Catholic school in New York.

  • Miss Stefani Germanotta singing in Christmas concert (middle), age 14

  • Lady Gaga playing piano and singing at International Night event, age 15 – circa 2001

  • Lady Gaga at a winter dance in 2003, age 17.

  • Lady Gaga in a picture with senior class from 2004 yearbook (bottom row, far left)

  • A personal profile picture of an 18-year-old Lady Gaga when she attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 2004

  • An 18-year-old Stefani Germanotta appears on MTV's 'Boiling Points' - a reality show which puts unsuspecting subjects in irritating situations and awards them $100 if they stay cool and collected for the duration of the prank. Gaga didn't stay the distance! - 2005

  • An early Gaga live performance at The Bitter End in Hollywood, California – January 2006

  • A brown haired, 21-year-old Lady Gaga plays Lollapalozza Festival in Chicago. The set is regarded as one of the pivotal moments in her career – August 2007

  • Lady Gaga transgresses into the style icon we all know and love at the Michalsky Fashion Show at Uferhalle, Germany – July 2008

  • Lady Gaga performs at Perez Hilton's 'One Night In New York City' event at The Highline Ballroom – October 2008

  • Lady Gaga's very first headline show in London at the G-A-Y nightclub – January 2009

  • Lady Gaga supports The Pussycat Dolls at the Manchester Evening News Arena – January 2009

  • Wearing a teapot inspired outfit, Gaga performs at the 2009 Brit Awards ceremony in London with The Pet Shop Boys and Brandon Flowers – February 2009

  • The second show of Lady Gaga's first gargantuan tour – The Fame Ball Tour - at the Wiltern in Los Angeles, California. The tour, which included an appearance at Glastonbury Festival lasted until the autumn – March 2009

  • Gaga's first, slightly awkward appearance on Friday Night With Jonathan Ross – April 2009

  • Lady Gaga does her first 'nude' magazine shoot for The Rolling Stone – May 2009

  • Lady Gaga rocks Glastonbury Festival – June 2009

  • Gaga baffles at a press conference for Isle of MTV in Malta wearing what appears to be a gimp mask – July 2009

  • Channelling the spirit of the Twilight saga, Gaga flashes her fangs at photographers at London's Heathrow Airport – August 2009

  • Lady Gaga performs at the MTV Video Music Awards,a performance which angered some charities after she pretended to stab herself on stage, unleashing fake blood – September 2009

  • Lady Gaga speaks on the south lawn of The United States Capitol at the rally for the National Equality March – October 2009.

  • Lady Gaga and Madonna's infamous kiss on Saturday Night Live – October 2009

  • Looking slightly freaky at the 13th annual ACE Awards Gala held at Cipriani, New York City – November 2009

  • An iconic still from the 'Bad Romance' music video – a promo which has attracted more than 200million views on YouTube alone – November 2009

  • The opening night of the North American leg of The Monster Ball tour hits Tornoto's Bell Centre – November 2009

  • Lady Gaga meets The Queen following the Royal Variety Performance in Blackpool, England – December 2009

  • Lady Gaga at the Castle Pub, Horn Lane, Acton, London, England after her appearance on the X Factor – December 2009

  • Lady Gaga rings in the New Year at Fontainbleau in Miami Beach, Florida with a typically outrageous show – December 2009/January 2010

  • The headline stealing Lady Gaga 'hair hat' unveiled at the Las Vegas Convention Center – January 2010

  • Lady Gaga dazzles in a space-age outfit on the red carpet of The 52nd Grammy Awards at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The singer scooped two awards: best dance recording for Poker Face and best electronic/dance album for The Fame – January 2010

  • Lady Gaga ups the weird outfit ante at her second Brit Awards ceremony. The tearful star won in all three categories she was nominated in – February 2010

  • The opening night of the European leg of The Monster Ball tour kicks off at the Manchester Evening News Arena and Gaga. Featuring giant monsters and awe-inspiring sets, the tour is an emphatic success – February 2010

  • Now an outright pop megastar, Lady Gaga gets a tattoo dedicated to her millions of 'Little Monsters', her fans – February 2010

  • Gaga channels the spirit of The Incredibles following one of her triumphant shows at London O2 Arena – February 2010

  • Lady Gaga stars in the epic, nine-minute Jonas Akerlund directed 'Telephone' video. Easily one of the defining moments of her brief career – March 2010

  • The singer has continued to shock, wearing a meat dress to the MTV Video Music Awards in 2010.

  • Lady Gaga's Monster Ball was one of the biggest tours of 2010 and saw the star perform over 100 dates around the world. It still hasn't finished.

  • On New Years Eve, Lady Gaga revealed that her new album Born This Way will be released in May 2011.

  • The single, which features this incredible photo, was released on February 11.

Issue Four of the Gigwise Print magazine is on pre-order now! Order here.

More about:


Photo: WENN.com