Elton John achieves Egot status after first Emmy win

The English singer received award for Disney+ farewell concert special

Composer and singer Sir Elton John became an Egot winner during the 2024 Emmys. PA

Sir Elton John has officially become an Egot winner after receiving his first Emmy at the 75th annual Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony honouring the best of television.

The British composer and singer received the Emmy in the category of Outstanding Variety Special (Live) for his Disney+ programme Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium. John's special beat The Apple Music Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show Starring Rihanna, Chris Rock’s stand up special Selective Outrage, The Oscars award ceremony and the 75th Annual Tony Awards.

John wasn’t present at the 2023 Emmy Awards due to a knee injury and his award was accepted by the team behind the streamed concert.

“We knew this show would be historic because it was going to be Elton’s last ever show in North America on tour, we knew it would be historic because it was Disney’s first ever live global stream,” British producer Ben Winston said on behalf of John.

“But we didn’t know it was going to be historic because it was going to win a man who has created the soundtrack to all of our lives, who has done so much great for society, who is all of our heroes, we didn’t know it was going to win him an Egot.”

John’s Emmy win makes him the 19th person ever to achieve Egot status. The honour is an acronym that stands for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony, and is the unofficial title given to artists who have to won awards in the four entertainment fields.

John has previously won two Oscars for Best Original Song Can You Feel the Love Tonight? from The Lion King in 1994 and I’m Gonna Love Me Again from Rocketman in 2019. He won a Tony Award for the original score of Aida in 2000 and is a five-time Grammy Award winner for That’s What Friends Are For in 1987, Basque in 1992, Can You Feel the Love Tonight in 1995, Candle in the Wind in 1998 and Aida in 2001.

As an Egot winner, John has now joined artists such as John Legend, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Audrey Hepburn, Whoopi Goldberg and Viola Davis.