Elton John opens Apple Music Hall in London with solo set for 600 fans
Elton John returned to a London stage on Sept. 28 with a piano, an hour of songs and 600 fans in the room. The one-off show opened Apple Music Hall at Battersea Power Station, his first U.K. show in more than three years, Billboard reported.
He played solo. No band, no big production around him, just voice and piano for a full hour.
The set drew across his catalogue, including "Rocket Man," "Bennie And The Jets," "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me," "Your Song," "Tiny Dancer" and "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues." The performance was streamed live around the world on Apple Music platforms and projected onto the outside of the venue for crowds gathered by the Thames.
It was a small room after very large stages. His previous U.K. show was headlining Glastonbury Festival in June 2023, the night that closed his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour. His most recent live appearance before London was Rock in Rio in Brazil on Sept. 7.
The guest list in London mixed presenters, musicians and collaborators. Those in attendance included Graham Norton, Peggy Gou, Nick Grimshaw, Tom Grennan, Jacob Alon, Nectar Woode and Zane Lowe. John had spoken about the forthcoming solo show with Lowe ahead of the night.
The venue itself is new. Its opening was announced on Sept. 21, only a week before John walked on stage. Inside is a 48-speaker spatial audio system, the surround format that places sounds around the listener, and a customisable 38-foot-wide stage.
Apple says the building also holds two dedicated recording and mix studios and a purpose-built broadcast control room for filming and streaming shows. The hall sits inside Battersea Power Station, where Apple opened its London headquarters in 2022.
More dates are already booked. Baby Keem is scheduled for Oct. 2, Troye Sivan for Oct. 13, Burna Boy for Oct. 29 and Charli xcx for Dec. 2. Arlo Parks is also part of the opening lineup, Pollstar reported.
For fans, this means scale is the story. Six hundred tickets. One piano. A singer heard most often in stadiums and festival fields, now close enough to hear the pedals move.
