John announced he was bisexual in 1976 and has been openly gay since 1988. from 1976 to 1987 and again from 1997 to 2002, and is an honorary life president of the club. Since its inception, the foundation has raised over £300 million. Following the deaths of Ryan White and Freddie Mercury, John established the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992, and a year later he began hosting his annual Foundation Academy Awards Party, which has since become one of the biggest high-profile Oscar parties in the Hollywood film industry. While he did not appear in his own biopic, John has made cameos in other films and television shows.Outside of music, John is an HIV/AIDS charity fundraiser, and has been involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s. That same year, his life and music career was dramatised in the biopic Rocketman. John's autobiography, Me, was published in 2019. In 2018, John began his ongoing farewell tour Farewell Yellow Brick Road, which will conclude in 2023. In 2017, John released the greatest hits album Diamonds, spanning his hits from 1970 to 2016. He has also had success in musical films and theatre, composing music for The Lion King and its stage adaptation, Aida and Billy Elliot the Musical. John continued his success in the 1980s and 1990s, having several hit singles and albums in both decades, and has continued to record new music since then. John's critical success was at its peak in the 1970s, when he released a streak of chart-topping albums in the US and UK, which began with Honky Château (1972) and culminated with Rock of the Westies (1975). In 1970, he formed the Elton John Band and released his first hit single, "Your Song", which became his first top ten in both the UK and the US. In 1969, John released his debut album Empty Sky. For two years, they wrote songs for other artists, and John worked as a session musician for artists. He met his longtime musical partner Taupin in 1967, after they both answered an advert for songwriters.
His songwriting partnership with Taupin is one of the most successful in history.Raised in Pinner, John learned to play piano at an early age, and by 1962 had formed Bluesology, a blues band he was a member of until 1967. John's music and showmanship have had a significant impact on popular music. Collaborating with lyricist Bernie Taupin since 1967, John is acclaimed by critics and musicians, particularly for his work during the 1970s, and his lasting impact on the music industry. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career as a solo artist since the 1970s, having released 31 albums since 1969. Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight 25 March 1947) is an English singer, pianist and composer.