LONDON – British singer Elton John was teary-eyed and “shocked” after President Biden surprised him with a National Humanities Medal following a concert at the White House on Friday night.
John, 75, who was born Reginald Kenneth Dwight, has become a world-renowned singer, pianist and songwriter. He has also championed various charities and humanitarian causes, particularly those dealing with HIV/AIDS.
Flanked by the president and first lady, John, wearing his signature red-tinted glasses, looked visibly shocked when he first saw the medal, covering his face with his hands in disbelief.
“I’m never dumbfounded, but I’m stunned and humbled and honored by this incredible award from the United States of America,” he said, overcome, moments after holding Jill Biden’s hand and embracing her husband. “I will treasure this one very much.”
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The Grammy Award-winning singer praised “America’s kindness to me as a musician,” calling it “unsurpassed” and vowed that his new medal would push him to redouble his efforts to help eradicate the disease that it affects more than 38 million people worldwide. according to the World Health Organization.
Biden, a big fan, described John as a “wave”, quoting Irish poet Seamus Heaney, and praised his “amazing career”.
With the White House as a backdrop, John opened with “Your Song” followed by classics: “Tiny Dancer”, “Rocketman”, “Crocodile Rock” and closed with the upbeat “I’m Still Standing” .
The concert on the South Lawn, titled “A Night When Hope and History Rhyme,” was part of his farewell tour, as the singer prepares to hang up the microphone after a glittering 50-year career. It was also an event to honor “everyday historic leaders in the audience,” according to the White House, including teachers, military families and LGBT+ advocates.
John dedicated “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” to Ryan White and his mother Jeanne White-Ginder, who attended the concert. Her son lost his life to AIDS-related complications after a blood transfusion and died in 1990, just one month before his high school graduation.
The legendary singer launched the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992, which to date has raised more than $450 million and funded programs on four continents. Between songs, John spoke to the audience about his hope to help eradicate the virus by 2030.
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Among the estimated 2,000 guests at the musical event were former first lady Laura Bush, tennis champion Billie Jean King, British ambassador to the US Karen Elizabeth Pierce and John’s husband David Furnish. Members of the Biden administration, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, also attended the concert.
John has previously performed at the White House in 1998 alongside Stevie Wonder at a state dinner for former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Other artists who have performed at the coveted venue include Patti LaBelle, opera star Andrea Bocelli and the Jonas Brothers.
He has sold more than 300 million records worldwide, according to his official website, and performed more than 4,000 performances in more than 80 countries.
He became Sir Elton John after being knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998 and has been a close ally of Britain’s Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, defending them in the press after criticism that receive to retire from royal duties. John reworked “Candle In The Wind” after the death of Harry’s mother in 1997, which broke records, selling more than 33 million copies as people around the world mourned.
Earlier this week, John told fans while on stage in Canada that he was “very sad” to learn of the Queen’s death, praising the late monarch’s decency and noting that for decades he had “worked hard”.
His Biden medal will sit alongside the Legion of Honor given to him by French President Macron in 2019.