Sting says it happened to the royal family and it changed his life: While the British musician Sting is known worldwide at this point in his career, the direction was led in his life as a young boy was completely different.
There was a direct trajectory for the singer to move from a working-class family to a world-class musician and certainly not one to be expected, all by himself.
Find out how Sting’s life and perspective changed dramatically after an encounter with a member of the royal family.
Sting’s upbringing and his music about it
Born in Northeast England, Gordon Sumner, the singer lived very close to one of the world’s largest shipyards. Most of his city worked there and was expected to end up as a laborer for younger men. But for Sting, this was where he knew he didn’t want to be. His music, Last Ship, is a story of this shipyard and the families and friendships surrounding it.
The 6-year-old told the Hollywood Reporter this week, “This is the story of my city.” “I come from a small town in the northeast of England. It was a famous shipyard town. We built the most significant building ships ever on the planet, right at the end of my road.
“So it was a kind of epic, surreal industrial environment, which I didn’t appreciate as a child. It was a very frightening idea that I would end up in the shipyard as my ancestors did. I would say every morning Thousands of men were passing by, thinking, ‘I don’t want this.
Before he was a teacher, he was a rock star
Sting’s early jobs included working as a bus conductor, construction worker, and tax officer. After these jobs, he attended what is now Northumbria University, where he qualified as a teacher, and got a job teaching English, music, and football at St. Paul’s First School in Cramlington for two years.
He later recalled working there, “I was the only man on the faculty. In fact, I was not the only teacher in the habit.”
The gold pop star’s fields still have a bit of English teacher in it, as evidenced by his “Book of the Month” posts on his Instagram account.
Sting’s unfortunate encounter with royalty
Growing up in the 1950s for a child, England must have seemed more significant than the life of the Queen and her family. For Sting, it was impressive to see him in pictures, listening to the Queen’s radio addresses, the reverence he had for his family and neighbors.
The Queen Mother came to the shipyard from the young Sting’s house to launch a new ship. The Hollywood Reporter asked Roxan Singer this week whether this was true. Not only was this true according to the singer, But He also changed his life.
“Absolutely. The Gospel of God is real. When they launched a big ship at the end of my road, they wanted to invite dignitaries from London — the Duke of Edinburgh, the Queen. It must have been 1960, so I was 8 or 9 years old. And the queen mother came down the street, and we all waved our little flags, and I caught her eye for some reason.
“That’s the little wave they used to have. And he just kept looking at me for what seemed like forever. I thought someone from another planet saw me. Me! Me a little! And this I think, well, I should be in that car. I have the right to a more meaningful life than this. And so in many ways, it was galvanized.
Get the best of The Thus delivered to your inbox – subscribe to The Thus Newsletters. For the latest Entertainment News follow The Thus on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest and stay in the know with what’s happening in the world around you – in real-time.
