Elton John has warned pop pal Ed Sheeran that his huge popularity won’t last forever.
John has become close friends with Sheeran after acting as a mentor for the ‘Shape of You’ star and running his management company, Rocket.
Now, speaking on George Ezra’s podcast, Sir Elton has revealed that he’s discussed the subject of longevity with Sheeran.
“You have a heyday and you have a rest, and the heyday can never be replaced,” he said.
Speaking of his own career path, the ‘Rocket Man’ icon continued: “After that I had the common sense to know I’m not going to have a No.1 every time straight away. I knew someone else would take over. It’s cyclical.”
“Ed will go through that and I’ve talked to him about it,” he added. “I’ve said, ‘There’ll come a time where this won’t happen every time and you have to accept that’.”
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John also said that he is confused by the ongoing popularity of Sheeran’s latest album release. “On the [US radio] chart, which is the middle-of-the-road chart, Ed is still No.1 and Shape Of You is still in the chart.
“It’s like, ‘Why?’ How many times do you want to listen to these things?”
Earlier his year, John revealed that he had told Sheeran to take a break from the music industry between his second and third LP releases.
“He was so omnipresent I said, ‘Ed, even I’m sick of you. Go away.’ And he did. He just went to the Far East with his girlfriend, had a great time, put on a lot of weight, ate food and came back.”
Meanwhile, Elton John is set to embark on an epic farewell tour – with UK dates scheduled for 2019 and 2020.
“I’m not Cher,” John said during his retirement announcement, referencing the singer’s habit of returning to performing following apparent ‘farewell’ tours. “This is the end.”
Following the announcement, however, Rod Stewart said that the tour was a “dishonest” attempt to sell tickets.
Ed Sheeran will also hit the road in the UK later this month – find more information and tickets here. The dates begin at Manchester’s Etihad Stadium on Thursday 24 May.