Elton John reveals he's dropping a brand new album filled with unlikely collaborations

Elton John is releasing an album of collaborations with artists from several generations and genres, including Nicki Minaj, Young Thug, Miley Cyrus, Lil Nas X, Stevie Nicks and Stevie Wonder.

The Lockdown Sessions, a collection of 16 songs featuring John with artists from Dua Lipa to the late Glen Campbell, will be released on October 22 by Interscope Records, the label announced Wednesday.

The pandemic project was spurred by Elton having to pause his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour in March 2020, and by his Apple Music talk show Rocket Hour, through which he got to know many of the artists he would work with.

The tracks were recorded with the artists remote from each other in some cases, together with safety precautions in others.

Elton said it pushed him into very unfamiliar musical territory, dipping into hip-hop, country and electronic dance music, sometimes in the same song.

"I realised there was something weirdly familiar about working like this," he said in a statement announcing the album. "At the start of my career, in the late 60s, I worked as a session musician. Working with different artists during lockdown reminded me of that. I'd come full circle: I was a session musician again. And it was still a blast."

The opening track with Dua Lipa, Cold Heart (PNAU Remix), was released earlier this month.

Elton takes the lead on some of the tracks, including duets with Brandi Carlile and Eddie Vedder, and is a featured guest on others, including previously released recordings with Rina Sawayama and Surfaces.

This article was first published on the NZ Herald and is republished here with permission.