‘Music Is My Breath,’ Stevie Wonder rejects retirement rumours

Stevie Wonder has dismissed any talk of retirement, declaring that as long as he can breathe, he will continue to make music.

The 75-year-old music legend made the statement during a candid interview on the BBC’s Sidetracked podcast, reaffirming his commitment to creativity and live performance.

The soul icon recently concluded a UK tour that was widely praised for its energy and joy, with critics describing his performances as “fresh and on form.”

While many of his contemporaries, such as Billy Joel and The Eagles, are slowing down, Wonder insists he has no intention of stepping away.

He said, “I’m not gonna stop the gift that keeps pouring through my body. I love doing what I’m doing… An artist never stops drawing.”

Wonder revealed he is still working on a long-anticipated album titled ‘Through The Eyes of Wonder’, a deeply personal project reflecting his experience as a blind man. This would be his first studio release since ‘A Time To Love’ in 2005, extending a career that began in 1962 when he was just 11 years old.

During the interview, Wonder reflected on his decades of hits and Grammy-winning albums, especially those from the 1970s, including ‘Innervisions’, ‘Fulfillingness’ First Finale’, and ‘Songs in the Key of Life’.

He said revisiting those songs still feels fresh: “Songs are like children, they’re with you forever. And singing those songs is like me taking another breath.”

Earlier this month, during a concert in Cardiff, the musician addressed a long-standing conspiracy theory that he is not actually blind.

“You know there have been rumours about me seeing and all that?” he told the audience, “But seriously, you know the truth.”

“Truth is, shortly after my birth, I became blind,” he told fans.

Calling his disability a gift, Wonder continued: “Now, that was a blessing because it’s allowed me to see the world in the vision of truth, of sight.”

In his Sidetracked interview, the singer talked about the importance of using music to spread positivity and speak truth to power.

Throughout his life, he has been a vocal civil rights campaigner and played a key role in the campaign to have the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr recognised as a national holiday in the US.

Wonder, who campaigned for Democrat Kamala Harris in last year’s US presidential election, told Macmanus that America was currently beleaguered by “people trying to go backwards”.

He said, “It’s not gonna go down like that. I think that if you look back in history, there’s always been a point when people wake up.

“And I think that, for those who think it is gonna go down like that, remember that God is watching you.”

ALSO READ TOP STORIES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE