Sir Elton John has said he collaborated with Britney Spears as he wanted to “enlighten everybody” that she is “one of the great pop stars of the world”.
The duo last month released their much-anticipated song Hold Me Closer, which mixes Sir Elton’s 1971 hit Tiny Dancer with his 1992 song The One, while parts of Don’t Go Breaking My Heart, from 1976, also feature.
The collaboration is Spears’s first new music in six years and her first release since the end of a 13-year conservatorship.
Sir Elton told Zoe Ball on Radio 2’s Breakfast Show that he had the basis of the track already and it was his husband David Furnish who suggested he collaborate with Spears, which he thought was “an amazing idea”.
“If anyone needs to have an arm put round her and to get back to what she does, it’s Britney,” he said.
The veteran musician, 75, added: “What I wanted to do when she completed (the song) was to enlighten everybody that this is one of the great pop stars of the world, one of the biggest stars in the world.
“She needs to get back to that. She’s had a horrific time that no-one really should go through.
“So if this is the way to getting her back to making another record – a Britney Spears record – then that’s what I wanted (the song) to turn out to be.”
Last week the song narrowly missed out on securing the number one single title to DJ Eliza Rose’s house track B.O.T.A. (Baddest Of Them All) as it came in at number three.
Alongside releasing new music, Sir Elton has been touring the world with his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour.
The singer confirmed this will definitely be his final tour, noting that by the end of it he will have done nearly 350 shows on this tour alone.
His last show is scheduled to take place in Stockholm, Sweden, in July 2023.
Sir Elton confessed: “You’ll probably hear me screaming from Stockholm in relief at not having to tour again and spending the rest of my life with my boys and David.”
He explained that he has “no qualms” about not playing again after this as he has been touring since he was 17 and feels he has had “enough applause and acclaim” and that he “can’t really achieve more” than he has done already.