The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have paid special tribute to Sir Elton John ahead of his farewell concert at the Dodgers Stadium.
The 75-year-old singer played at the Los Angeles stadium on Sunday as part of his final Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour date in North America. The performance was also livestreamed by Disney+ for the concert special, Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium.
Before the concert, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle appeared in a compilation of pre-recorded messages from stars, fellow musicians, and even President Joe Biden who shared their praise for Sir Elton.
In the video, which has since been posted on social media, the royal couple congratulated Elton John on his decades-long career and thanked the British singer for his close friendship with Harry’s mother, the late Princess Diana, and their two children – Archie, three, and Lilibet, one.
“Hi Elton, we just wanted to say congratulations,” Meghan began the couple’s message, before Harry also chimed in with “congratulations”.
“And that we are just so proud of you. We’re so grateful that we were able to see you on your farewell tour also,” the duchess continued.
Prince Harry added: “And thank you for entertaining everybody for so many decades. Thank you for being the friend that you were for my mum, thank you for being our friend. Thank you for being friend to our kids and thank you for entertaining people right around the world.”
“Even though this is officially your retirement, this will not be your last gig, we know that. But we love you and congratulations on an incredible career,” he concluded.
At the end of the clip, Meghan is seen resting her head on her husband’s shoulder as she waves goodbye to the camera. The 41-year-old duchess was seen dressed in a dark brown top, while the 38-year-old royal wore a blue suit and white shirt. The video appeared to be filmed at the couple’s Archewell offices, as the foundation’s logo could be seen on the double doors behind them.
The royal couple have been friends with Elton John for many years. The singer was close to the late Princess of Wales and maintained a relationship with her son after her death.
The pop singer and the princess reportedly met in 1981 when Sir Elton was hired to perform at Prince Andrew’s 21st birthday celebration and the pair bonded on the dancefloor. Following her death in 1997, he performed his hit song “Candle In The Wind” at Diana’s funeral, with the lyrics changed to reflect her life.
In 2018, the “Rocket Man” singer performed at the Sussexes wedding at Windsor Castle, and hosted the couple at his home in Nice, France in 2019 – even allowing them to use his private jet.
Elton John paid his own tribute to his close friend Princess Diana in August, on what was the 25th anniversary of her death. The “Bennie And The Jets” musician posted a photo of the two of them to his Instagram with the caption: “You will always be missed.”
However, it seems that his memory of the princess lives on in Prince Harry. John previously spoke about the similarities the mother and son share.
“We’ve worked together on numerous occasions, been to the International Aids Conference together, and while we’re not in each other’s back pockets, I have a certain feeling for him because he reminded me so much of Diana,” the singer told British GQ in reference to Prince Harry.
“I love the fact that he would walk into a room and disarm people straight away, which in all my life I’ve only seen about two or three people able to do,” he added. “One was Bill Clinton, one was Princess Diana and the other is Harry.”
