Stevie Wonder vows to keep playing “for as long as I breathe”

Stevie Wonder has dismissed any rumours of slowing down his touring commitments, saying that he will continue to play live for the rest of his life.

The iconic singer, songwriter and pianist opened up about his mindset towards playing live when appearing on a recent episode of the BBC’s Sidetracked podcast. During the discussion, he told host Annie Mac that while his music contemporaries like Billy Joel and Eagles may be slowing down their touring commitments, he wants to keep going for years to come.

“For as long as you breathe, for as long as your heart beats, there’s more for you to do,” 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. As long as you can imagine is as long as you are going to be creative.”

During the interview, which took place a day before he headlined BST Hyde Park, the Motown legend also confirmed that he is working on a new album, which will be his first in 20 years.

The LP is called ‘Through The Eyes Of Wonder’, and has been hinted at by the musician since 2008, but has not yet been released. According to interviews he’s done and hints he has shared over the year, the record comes as a performance piece that will reflect his experience as a blind man.

Wonder has been sharing albums since he was a child. He began his recording career back in 1962 when he was just 11, and has steadily released new material up until the aforementioned 2005 album.

Elsewhere in the interview with Annie Mac, the artist was asked about his opinion on playing his huge hits – like ‘Superstition’ and ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ – at all of his live shows, and questioned if he ever gets tired of revisiting them.

“Songs are like children, they’re with you forever,” he replied. “They are statements from the spirit within you, and singing those songs is like me taking another breath.”

Earlier this month, Wonder responded to a long-standing conspiracy that he’s not actually blind.

“Truth is, shortly after my birth, I became blind,” he said while on stage in Cardiff. “Now, that was a blessing because it’s allowed me to see the world in the vision of truth, of sight. See people in the spirit of them, not how they look. Not what colour they are, but what colour is their spirit?”

Wonder’s BST Hyde Park show was held on Saturday July 12, following bill-topping sets there in 2016 and 2019. It was the final stop of his ‘Love, Light and Song’ tour, which also saw him visit Manchester, Birmingham and Lytham.