Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is an English singer, songwriter, pianist, and composer. Collaborating with lyricist Bernie Taupin since 1967 on more than 30 albums, John has sold more than 300 million records, making him one of the best-selling music artists. He has more than fifty Top 40 hits in the UK Singles Chart and US Billboard Hot 100, including seven number ones in the UK and nine in the US, as well as seven consecutive number-one albums in the US. His tribute single "Candle in the Wind 1997", rewritten in dedication to Diana, Princess of Wales, sold over 33 million copies worldwide and is the best-selling single in the history of the UK and US singles charts. He has also produced records and occasionally acted in films. John owned Watford F.C. from 1976 to 1987 and from 1997 to 2002. He is an honorary life president of the club.
Elton John Recalls Being Denied From Adopting In Ukraine For Being Gay
Ukraine because they are gay. The singer was guesting on pop star Dua Lipa’s podcast Dua Lipa: At Your Service when he shared that, in 2009, he was visiting an orphanage in the country and had a life-changing, yet heartbreaking experience. “I was carrying this little boy around for hours,” John recalled. “We had a press conference at the end and they said ‘You seem very fond of this little boy.
Would you think of adopting him?’ and I went ‘I’d actually love to!’”However, social media caught wind, and “it went around the world straight away… It was, ‘Elton John wants to adopt two children.’”It was explained to John that adopting the boy, who was named Lev, wouldn’t be possible for the couple because they were gay.
It did, however, solidify things for John and Furnish about their future desires to start a family.John recalled that following the incident Furnish broached the subject first.
He asked, ‘Well, what do you think about having kids?’ I always said no but this little boy was telling me something. He was saying, ‘C’mon you can be a dad,’ and that’s when we decided to have children, because of this little boy in Ukraine.”In 2018 John was reunited with Lev, in an event that was arranged by the Elena Pinchuk Foundation as part of an anti-AIDS charity event titled A Day with Elton John.
