While she was homeschooled, her mother taught her and Finneas the basics of songwriting. O'Connell and her brother had worked together on some music, while he had been writing and producing his own songs and performing with his band. O'Connell said her brother and her mother inspired her to get into music. Their parents encouraged the siblings to express themselves and explore whatever they wanted, including art, dancing and acting. O'Connell wrote her first "real" song at age 11 for her mother's songwriting class. The song is about the zombie apocalypse, inspired by the television series The Walking Dead from which she took script lines and episode titles that she added to the song as part of the assignment. O'Connell had gone on some acting auditions, which she disliked; however, she enjoyed recording background dialogue for crowd scenes and worked on the films Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Ramona and Beezus, and the X-Men series. She performed at talent shows and joined the Los Angeles Children's Chorus at age eight.
As part of his farewell tour, in June 2019, John was presented with France's highest civilian award, the Legion d'honneur, by President Emmanuel Macron during a ceremony at the Élysée Palace in Paris. Macron called John a "melodic genius" and one of the first gay artists to give a voice to the LGBT community. On 25 June 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed John as one of hundreds of artists whose master recordings were reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal Studios fire.
More InfoSince 1970, John's band, of which he is the pianist and lead singer, has been known as the Elton John Band. The band has had multiple line-up changes, but Nigel Olsson, Davey Johnstone, and Ray Cooper have been members (albeit not continuously) since 1969, 1971 and 1974 respectively. Olsson left the band in 1984 but rejoined in 2000. Cooper has worked on and off with the Elton John Band, because he maintains obligations to other musicians as a session player and sideman as a road-tour percussionist.
More InfoBillie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell (/ˈaɪlɪʃ/ EYE-lish; born December 18, 2001) is an American singer and songwriter. She first gained attention in 2015 when she uploaded the song "Ocean Eyes" to SoundCloud, which was subsequently released by the Interscope Records subsidiary Darkroom. The song was written and produced by her brother Finneas, with whom she collaborates on music and live shows. Her debut EP, Don't Smile at Me (2017), became a sleeper hit, reaching the top 15 in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia.
More InfoJohn has appeared in commercials for Diet Coke, the Royal Mail, Snickers, John Lewis & Partners department store among others. First endorsing Diet Coke in 1990, authors Roger Blackwell and Tina Stephan wrote “the relationship of Elton John and Diet Coke is one of the classic success stories in the role of sponsorship in brand building.” His 2018 John Lewis & Partners Christmas advert in the UK, titled, "The Boy & The Piano", sees him reminisce about his life and career in reverse, eventually culminating with Christmas Day in the 1950s when he received a piano for Christmas from his mother.
More InfoSince 1970, John's band, of which he is the pianist and lead singer, has been known as the Elton John Band. The band has had multiple line-up changes, but Nigel Olsson, Davey Johnstone, and Ray Cooper have been members (albeit not continuously) since 1969, 1971 and 1974 respectively. Olsson left the band in 1984 but rejoined in 2000. Cooper has worked on and off with the Elton John Band, because he maintains obligations to other musicians as a session player and sideman as a road-tour percussionist.
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