Elton John, born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on March 25, 1947, in Pinner, Middlesex, England, is a British singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is acclaimed by critics and musicians, particularly for his work during the 1970s, and his music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry.

Elton John was raised in Pinner and learned to play piano at an early age, winning a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music, where he studied for five years. He formed the blues band Bluesology in 1962 but left in 1967 to embark on a solo career and met Bernie Taupin that same year.

For two years, they wrote songs for other artists, and John worked as a session musician. In 1969, John released his debut album Empty Sky, and a year later formed the Elton John Band, also releasing his first hit single, "Your Song".

His critical and commercial success was at its peak in the 1970s, when he released a string of chart-topping albums both in the US and UK, which began with Honky Château in 1972 and culminated with Rock of the Westies in 1975.

His success continued in the 1980s and 1990s, having several hit singles and albums in both decades, and he has continued to record new music since. Elton John has also had success in musical films and theatre, composing music for The Lion King in 1994, Aida in 2000, and Billy Elliot the Musical in 2005.

His final tour, Farewell Yellow Brick Road from 2018 to 2023, became the highest-grossing tour ever at the time. His life and career were dramatized in the 2019 biopic Rocketman.

Elton John is an HIV/AIDS charity fundraiser and has been involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s. He established the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992, which has raised over £300 million since its inception, and a year later he began hosting his annual AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Party, which has since become one of the biggest high-profile Oscar parties in the Hollywood film industry.

Elton John was the chairman and director of Watford Football Club from 1976 to 1987, and again from 1997 to 2002, and is an honorary life president of the club.

From the late 1970s to the late 1980s, John developed a severe addiction to drugs and alcohol, but has been clean and sober since 1990. In 2005, he entered a civil partnership with his long-term partner, the Canadian filmmaker David Furnish.

Elton John has had a lavish lifestyle, known for his oversize glasses and outrageous outfits. He enjoyed many expensive cars, large homes, and shopping sprees. Despite his fame and fortune, Elton John has faced personal struggles, including his battle with addiction. However, he has been open about his journey to sobriety and has used his platform to help others facing similar challenges.

He officially came out as bisexual in a 1976 interview with Rolling Stone, and in 1992 he told the magazine that he was "quite comfortable about being gay". In 1993, he began a relationship with filmmaker David Furnish, a former advertising executive from Toronto.

On December 21, 2005, Elton and David were one of the first couples to have a civil partnership in the UK, held at the Windsor Guildhall. When gay marriage became legal in the UK in 2014, Elton and David married in Windsor. They have two sons, Zachary and Elijah.

Some of his best songs include "Your Song", "Rocket Man", "Bennie and the Jets", "Crocodile Rock", "Tiny Dancer", "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", "Candle in the Wind", "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me", and "I'm Still Standing".

His music has spanned various genres, including rock, pop rock, glam rock, soft rock, and blues. John's vocal style, with its Southern accent and gospel inflections, was strongly American-influenced, as was his pianism, an ornate, gospel-flavored elaboration of the stylings of Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis.

Elton John has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career. He has won five Grammy Awards, five Brit Awards, including for Outstanding Contribution to Music, two Academy Awards, two Golden Globes, a Tony Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, a Disney Legend Award, and the Kennedy Center Honor.

He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Elton John was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for services to music and charitable services in 1998, and was appointed a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour by King Charles III in 2020.

In 2024, he won an Emmy award for his program Elton John Live: Farewell from Dodger Stadium, completing the set of television, music, movie, and stage awards known as an EGOT.