The Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger has said there is “nothing good” about getting older, dismissing the idea that age brings wisdom.
The 82-year-old reflected on ageing during a recent appearance on The New York Times’ podcast The Interview.
Asked whether there was anything good or bad about getting older, Jagger replied: “There’s nothing good about it. Nothing. You don’t get wisdom. You forget everything. Forgot all my wisdom.”
“I might have had a couple of pearls, but I’ve forgotten what they are,” he continued. “It’s not particularly pleasant and, of course, you can’t do things as quickly as you want to, and physically you can’t do things that you would like to do. You can still do them, but you have to be more careful.”
Jagger also discussed how more than six decades of fame had affected his relationship with the outside world.
“Obviously, it’s not normal,” he said. “It is not like most people’s lives. It does affect you. You can become disassociated. From other people.”
Asked what he personally did to remain grounded, Jagger replied: “You go out and walk on the street on your own and do normal things.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Jagger discussed the relationship between the Stones and their audiences, explaining that he wanted their concerts to offer an escape from everyday worries rather than become political lectures.
“The bottom line is that my job in the live music world is to [ensure] people that come have the best time they possibly can, and for two hours forget all their problems and the problems of the world,” he said. “Their mortgages and whatever. Just so they can have the best time.”
“Your job is to make them go more apeshit,” he added. “You don’t want to lecture them.”
The comments come after the Stones released their 25th studio album, ‘Foreign Tongues’, on July 10. It went on to become the band’s 15th UK Number One album, drawing them level with The Beatles and placing both groups joint-second on the all-time list behind Robbie Williams.
Despite his thoughts on ageing, Jagger recently told NME that he remained creatively active and had already started writing more material.
“Yeah, it could be a trio [of records],” he said when asked whether another album was planned. “I’ve already started writing songs anyway. They could be for other people though.”
In a three-and-a-half-star review of ‘Foreign Tongues’, NME wrote: “Mick, Keith and Ronnie have hit a surprising purple patch – and if you believe the eternally energetic entertainer’s claim that he’s already writing the follow-up to ‘Foreign Tongues’, there’s plenty more left in the tank.”
The Stones have yet to announce any new live dates, although Jagger has repeatedly expressed his hope that they will return to the stage in 2027.
“Hopefully [we haven’t played our last show],” he told NME. “I don’t think there’ll be shows this year, but I hope to do some next year for the Stones.”
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