© Getty Images

Reginald Kenneth Dwight - Elton John was actually born Reginald Kenneth Dwight.

© Getty Images

A star is born - He was born on March 25, 1947, and is from Pinner, Middlesex in England.

© Getty Images

Child prodigy - He showed an early talent for music, winning a junior scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music in London at the age of 11. 

© Getty Images

Working his way up - At 15, he started a regular gig playing pubs and bars.

© Getty Images

Bluesology - In 1962, the future star and some friends founded Bluesology, a band that would experience success in the mid-60s.

© Getty Images

Elton John is born - In 1967, he changed his name to Elton John in homage to his Bluesology band members, Elton Dean and Long John Baldry.

© Getty Images

The songwriter - John formally began a career as a songwriter in 1968. He was also a session musician at this time, and provided backing vocals.

© Getty Images

First album - He released his first album, 'Empty Sky,' in 1969.

© Getty Images

'Elton John' - His second album, 'Elton John,' was released in 1970.

© Getty Images

'Your Song' - The album's second single, 'Your Song,' was John’s first big hit. It helped the album hit the top five in the UK and the US.

© Getty Images

'Tumbleweed Connection' - He followed that up with the album 'Tumbleweed Connection' in 1970.

© Getty Images

'Madman Across the Water' -

Album 'Madman Across the Water' was released in 1971.

© Getty Images

'17-11-70' - The live album '17-11-70' was also released in 1971.

© Getty Images

'Honky Château' - The album 'Honky Château' was released in 1972.

© Getty Images

'‘Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player' - Album 'Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player' came out in 1973.

© Getty Images

'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road' - That year also saw the release of the classic Elton John album 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.'

© Getty Images

The Rocket Record Company -

John founded his own label, The Rocket Record Company, in 1973.

© Getty Images

'Caribou' - The album 'Caribou' was released in 1974.

© Getty Images

'Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy' - He released the album 'Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy' in 1975.

© Getty Images

Hollywood Walk of Fame - John received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1975.

© Getty Images

'Rock of the Westies' - He released his 10th studio album, 'Rock of the Westies,' in 1975.

© Getty Images

'Here and There' - Live album 'Here and There' was released in 1976.

© Getty Images

'Blue Moves' - Another album, 'Blue Moves,' was released just a few months later.

© Getty Images

Coming out - That same year, he told Rolling Stone magazine that he was bisexual. In 1984, he married close friend Renate Blauel, but the marriage only lasted three years. He came out as gay in 1988.

© Getty Images

Watford Football Club - John became the owner of Watford Football Club in 1976. He owned the club until 1987, and then again from 1997 to 2002.

© Getty Images

'A Single Man' - He released the album 'A Single Man' in 1978.

© Getty Images

'Victim of Love' -

Album 'Victim of Love' was released in 1979.

© Getty Images

'21 at 33' -

He released album '21 at 33' in 1980.

© Getty Images

'The Fox' - Album 'The Fox' was released in 1981.

© Getty Images

'Jump Up!' - He released the album 'Jump Up!' in 1982.

© Getty Images

'Too Low for Zero' - The album 'Too Low for Zero' was released in 1983.

© Getty Images

'Breaking Hearts' - Album 'Breaking Hearts' was released in 1984.

© Getty Images

'Ice on Fire' - 'Ice on Fire' was released in 1985.

© Getty Images

'Leather Jackets' -

He released the album 'Leather Jackets' in 1986.

© Getty Images

'Live in Australia' - 'Live in Australia' was released in 1987.

© Getty Images

'Reg Strikes Back' - Album 'Reg Strikes Back' was released in 1988.

© Getty Images

'Sleeping with the Past' - Album 'Sleeping with the Past' came out in 1989.

© Getty Images

'The One' - Album 'The One' was released in 1992.

© Getty Images

Elton John AIDS Foundation - He established the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992. It has raised hundreds of millions of dollars.

© Getty Images

'Duets' - 'Duets' was released in 1993.

© Getty Images

David Furnish - Elton John and David Furnish became a couple in 1993. They entered into a civil partnership in 2005, and wed in 2014 after same-sex marriage became legal in England. They have two sons together.

© Getty Images

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - Elton John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

© Getty Images

'Made in England' - He released the album 'Made in England' in 1995.

© Getty Images

Sir Elton John - He was named to the Order of the British Empire in 1996, and made a Knight Bachelor by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998.

© Getty Images

'The Big Picture' -

He released 'The Big Picture' in 1997.

© Getty Images

'Candle in the Wind 1997' - He released the song 'Candle in the Wind 1997' following friend Princess Diana's death. It sold over 33 million copies worldwide.

© Getty Images

'One Night Only – The Greatest Hits' - 'One Night Only – The Greatest Hits' was released in 2000.

© Getty Images

'Songs from the West Coast' - The album 'Songs from the West Coast' was released in 2001.

© Getty Images

Las Vegas - In 2004, he began a concert residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. After wrapping up that residency in 2009, he returned to Sin City with a new show in 2011, which ended in May 2018.

© Getty Images

'Peachtree Road' - Album 'Peachtree Road' was released in 2004.

© Getty Images

'Elton John's Christmas Party' - 'Elton John's Christmas Party' was released in 2005.

© Getty Images

'The Captain & the Kid' - He released 'The Captain & the Kid' in 2006.

© Getty Images

'The Union' - 'The Union' was released in 2010.

© Getty Images

'Good Morning to the Night' - 'Good Morning to the Night' was released in 2012.

© Getty Images

'The Diving Board' - Album 'The Diving Board' was released in 2013.

© Getty Images

'Wonderful Crazy Night' - His last studio album, 'Wonderful Crazy Night,' was released in 2016.

© Getty Images

Movies and musicals - John has also achieved huge success with soundtracks, including 'The Lion King,' and on Broadway, with shows like 'Billy Elliot the Musical.'

© Getty Images

Biopic -

In May 2019, 'Rocketman,' a biopic starring Taron Egerton as Elton John, hit theaters. Elton John and Bernie Taupin would go on to win the Oscar for Best Original Song for '(I'm Gonna) Love Me Again.'

© Getty Images

Awards and retirement -

He has won two Oscars, two Golden Globes, a Tony, multiple Grammys, and many more awards. But in January 2018, Elton John announced he was retiring from touring, and the following September began a three-year farewell tour (which had to be paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic and ended up stretching in 2023).

© Getty Images

His final show in America -

He played his final show in the US on November 20, 2022, in Los Angeles's Dodger Stadium—the same place where the icon first cemented his global status back in 1975. 

"It's the last show of my final tour in America, so let’s end it with a bang, shall we?" John tweeted. It was an emotional affair, but the legend was joined in his historic final LA show with special guests Dua Lipa, Heidi Klum, and Dita Von Teese. 

© Getty Images

The highest-grossing tour of all time -

According to figures reported by the Billboard Boxscore, the tour had grossed US$817.9 million across 278 shows by the beginning of 2023, beating out Ed Sheeran who previously held the record for the highest-grossing tour in history with The Divide Tour at US$776.4 million in 2019. The rocketman sure knows how to go out with a bang. 

See also: Elton John's Lyrical Life!

© Getty Images