Mick Jagger regrets heeding John Lennon's advice on Elvis

In a new interview, Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger expressed regret over never meeting Elvis Presley, revealing he followed advice from John Lennon to avoid the encounter. Jagger made the comments on the "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend" podcast, which was released on July 13 and 14, 2026.

Jagger recalled that Lennon, after meeting Presley with his Beatles bandmates in August 1965, repeatedly advised him against seeking out the rock and roll legend. "I remember John telling me, 'You should never meet your heroes. I would never meet Elvis, Mick, if I were you,'" Jagger said. "And so I didn't. I took John's advice. It was really stupid of me, really. I'd love to have met Elvis. Maybe my Elvis version would have been different."

The Beatles' famous meeting with Presley took place at a mansion he was renting in Los Angeles. While Lennon's subsequent advice to Jagger suggested a degree of disappointment, his public comments at the time were effusive, calling Elvis "a god" and saying the band was "terrified" to meet him. Fellow Beatle Paul McCartney has consistently described the 1965 encounter positively, recalling earlier this year that Presley was "really great," "very...