Every breath you take, every move you make — you’ll be watching Sting.
That’s right, the famed singer-songwriter and vocalist-bassist of The Police is the latest act to be announced for the upcoming Emirates Airline Dubai Jazz Festival. He will headline on February 26 at the new venue — Dubai Media City Amphitheatre.
“With more than 100 million album sales and 15 Hollywood movies under his performing arts belt, Sting is the real deal, a true star of iconic status and we are thrilled to secure him as the headline act for the festival’s second day,” said Anthony Younes, co-founder and CEO of jazz fest organisers Chillout Productions.
A 16-time Grammy winner and a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Sting will bring an extensive setlist of his — and The Police’s — greatest hits to the stage, from Roxanne and Desert Rose to If I Ever Lose My Faith In You.
Younes added that the 63-year-old’s ability to “effortlessly and successfully compose and perform jazz, pop and rock songs makes him the ideal artist” to represent the festival’s commitment to fusing genres.
Sting joins a youthful bill of artists at the three-day event. Lindsey Stirling — a violinist and America’s Got Talent quarter-finalist — will support Sting on the night. The 28-year-old is also a dancer, performance artist and composer spanning classical, pop, hip-hop and EDM. Meanwhile, James Blunt and Christina Perri are set to kick things off on February 25, while John Legend and Esperanza Spalding wrap up the festival on February 27.
In the meantime, tabloid! rounds up five things to know about Sting:
HE WAS A SCHOOL TEACHER
Have you ever noticed Sting’s perfect syntax? How about his impeccable grammar? We haven’t paid it much attention, either, but we do know he’s a lover of the language. Before finding his calling as a member of The Police in 1977, he was a certified music and English teacher at a primary school in the UK. Hints of this became apparent in his songwriting when he took inspiration from William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130 on his song Sister Moon. But lyrics weren’t the only way he exercised his literary muscles. He put his skills to use on his autobiography, Broken Music: A Memoir, in 2005. He also did a tour of colleges as a guest lecturer, speaking to English classes about penning the memoir.
STING IS NOT HIS REAL NAME
When a reporter referred to Sting by his real name in 1985, he responded clearly: “My children call me Sting. My mother calls me Sting. Who is this Gordon character?” Because let’s face it: Gordon Sumner doesn’t quite have a rock star ring to it. In a world where single-named pop stars — Rihanna, Beyonce, Adele, Madonna — are known to be top dog, the nickname ‘Sting’ is right at home. But how did it start? Whilst performing as a part of the Phoenix Jazzmen back in the day, the musician wore a striped black and yellow jersey that made him look something like a bumblebee, so his bandleader declared him ‘Sting’. Thankfully for us, he hasn’t looked back since.
HE’S COLLABORATED WITH…
Pretty much everyone. You might know about the more historic collaborations, like his work with Cheb Mami on Desert Rose, a song that proved to be one of the most popular fusion efforts of its time. But how about this for unlikely duos: the singer collaborated with R’n’B musician Craig David in 2003 on Rise & Fall and with Enrique’s dad Julio Iglesias in 1987 on Fragile. Just this year, he performed a duet, with actor Robert Downey Jr., of the song Driven to Tears — and it wasn’t even their first time joining forces. On the series Ally McBeal in 2001, the pair sang Every Breath You Take together.
HE WAS MADONNA’S CUPID
Since 2008, Madonna and Guy Ritchie are no longer an item. But before their divorce, they owed their eight-year marriage to Sting and his wife, Trudie, who introduced them to one another. “I’m cupid… They’re two wonderful people. They’re a great couple, and that’s why they got together. It was their idea, really,” Sting said, keeping humble. In 2000, when Madonna gave birth to Rocco, her first child with Ritchie, she declared Sting and Trudie the godparents.
HE’S WORTH AN ESTIMATED $300 MILLION
About 10 years ago, it was reported that Sting receives nearly $2,000 (Dh7,346) a day in royalties from one single song — Every Breath You Take. Yes, that’s probably enough to cover your portion of rent. Around the same time, his worth was estimated to be about $300 million. Yes, that’s probably enough to cover your entire life. In 1997, P. Diddy, then still Puff Daddy, used The Police’s popular 1983 melody Every Breath You Take in a tribute song to Notorious B.I.G., but failed to ask permission. Despite the money this has made him, Sting isn’t running to the bank to open trust funds for his seven children. “All my kids know that, and they rarely ask me for anything, which I really respect and appreciate … Obviously if they were in trouble, I would help them, but I’ve never really had to do that. They have the work ethic that makes them want to succeed on their own merit,” he said.
