Elton John Announces Upcoming Retirement & Farewell Tour

Legendary performer Elton John will enter retirement from touring after the 300+ show “Farewell Yellow Brick Road” tour. Today, Elton announced the first leg of the tour via an exclusive VR180 live stream on YouTube. John and his band will visit five continents, hitting North America, Europe, Asia, South America and Australasia before the tour reaches its conclusion in 2021.

Elton John will kick off the tour in the U.S. on September 8 at the PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania. From there, the famed musician will bring the run to Philadelphia, Buffalo, State College, Hartford, Washington D.C., Toronto, Ottawa and Quebec City later in September. A busy October will include visits to Montreal, Boston, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Grand Rapids, New York City, Louisville, Nashville, Chicago and St. Louis.

The tour continues in November with concerts in Columbus, Cleveland, New York City, Sunrise, Miami, Orlando, Tampa and Atlanta. Elton John’s multi-night visit to Atlanta spreads into a December that also sees him visit Birmingham, New Orleans, Houston, San Antonio and Dallas. In 2019, the tour resumes with stops in Boise, Portland (Oregon), Fresno, Sacramento, Oakland, San Jose, Los Angeles, Glendale, San Diego, Denver and Tulsa.

While Elton hasn’t ruled out future studio albums and residencies, this tour is expected to mark the superstar’s last tour and will end half a century on the road for one of rock and pop’s most renowned performers. Look for John to unveil new stage production that, as per a press release, “will take his fans on a musical and highly visual journey spanning a 50-year career of hits like no one has ever seen before.”

“Performing live fuels me and I’m ecstatic and humbled to continue to play to audiences across the globe,” said Elton in a press release. “I plan to bring the passion and creativity that has entertained my fans for decades to my final tour. After the tour finishes, I’m very much looking forward to closing off that chapter of my life by saying farewell to life on the road. I need to dedicate more time to raising my children.”

Tickets go on sale to the general public beginning February 2 at 10 a.m. local.

Watch the VR announcement of the tour: