The “Rocketman” singer born Reginald Dwight was thrilled to change his name to Elton Hercules John.
“You weren’t always Elton John,” hostStephen Colbertpointed out early in their conversation.
“You were born Reginald Kenneth Dwight, which is also a lovely name.”
Elton John and Stephen Colbert.Credit:Scott Kowalchyk/CBS
John was quick to disagree, replying.
“It’s a s— name.”
“Agree to disagree,” Colbert said, but John wasn’t quite done lamenting his old moniker.
Elton John in 1976.Anwar Hussein/Getty
“A little baby?
‘Reginald, oh Reginald.'”
“It wasn’t Reggie, it wasReginald,” the 77-year-old singer added.
“Like, who the hell?
As soon as I could change it, I did.”
There is one bright side to the name, as Colbert then pointed out.
“Reginald’s the male version of Regina, which means ‘Queen,'” noted the late-night host.
“Thank you,” John deadpanned, earning laughter from the studio audience.
“They got it spot on.
In 1947, they knew what they were doing.”
The “Rocketman” singer-songwriter went on to explain the origins of his chosen name: Elton Hercules John.
“The saxophone player was called Elton Dean,” he explained.
“And I thought, ‘Elton!
There’s not many Eltons in the world, that’s pretty unusual.”
This is where the second part of his transformation came into play.
The musician confirmed that, ultimately, changing his name did start to alter him as a person.
He continued, “Fame is a very weird thing.
I enjoyed every single minute of it until I realized that theonlything in my life was fame.
What have I become?’
Watch Elton John talk through his name change in the interview above.
