Sir Roderick David Stewart, better known as the British rock and pop singer, Rod Stewart, is one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He’s sold over 250 million records worldwide, had ten number-one albums, and charted 31 top ten singles in the UK – six of which peaked at number one. In the US, Stewart has had 16 top ten singles, four of those reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100.
Rod got his start busking with a harmonica in 1962. The following year, he joined the British soul band The Dimensions as a vocalist and harmonica player. In 1964, he joined Long John Baldry and the All-Stars before joining the Jeff Beck Group in 1967. In 1969, he joined the rock band Faces. The same year he put out his debut solo album. Since then, he’s released over 30 albums and has done dozens of international tours. From 2011 to October 2022, Stewart enjoyed his own concert residency in Las Vegas at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace.
With a net worth of $300 million, it’s safe to say that Rod Stewart doesn’t need to worry about money for the remainder of his life. At this point, the fact that he continues to perform and put out new music is a testament to the fact that he’s doing what he loves. And at 77, he’s more than earned his right to make whatever professional decisions he wants regardless of how people may view them.
That being said, Stewart has made a number of decisions in recent years that have been raising eyebrows. Join us as we take a look at some of the questionable choices that the septuagenarian singer has made that have caused his fans and critics to stop and scratch their heads.
Facts Verse Presents: Rod Stewart Has Shocked Fans After His Latest Decisions
He Snubbed The World Cup
Rod Stewart recently reported that he turned down over a million bucks to perform at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The Rhythm of My Heart Singer broke this news to The Sunday Times in November 2022.
Stewart claimed that while he was offered more than $1 million for the gig, he turned it down due to Qatar’s criminalization of homosexuality. He went on to say that he felt as if it wasn’t right to perform in a country with such repressive laws.
Controversy surrounded the World Cup held in Qatar in 2022. Both Robbie Williams and BTS singer Jung Kook both came under fire for agreeing to perform in Qatar. Dua Lipa was at one point rumored to being performing at the event’s opening ceremony, but that ended up not happening. Days before the World Cup’s opening ceremony, Dua Lipa put out a statement denying that she had ever even been involved in any negotiations to perform. Oddly enough, actor Morgan Freeman ended up making an appearance despite historically being an advocate for human rights.
Stewart told The Sunday Times that he would be cheering for England from afar and that he looks forward to visiting Qatar when it has fulfilled each and every one of the human rights commitments that it made when it won the privilege to host the World Cup.
He Hosted A Ukrainian Family Of 7
The Maggie May singer is a very proud father of eight children, Sarah, Sean, Renee, Kimberly, Ruby, Alastair, Liam , and Aiden. He had his first child, Sarah, with his ex-wife Susannah Boffey in 1963. In 1979, Stewart got married to Alana Stewart. Not long after, they welcomed the birth of their daughter, Kimberly. The following year Alana gave birth to Rod’s first son, Sean.
Sadly, Rod’s second marriage soon soured, and he and Alana got divorced in 1984. The Grammy Award-winning artist then welcomed his fourth child, Ruby, in 1984 after falling in love with a woman named Kelly Emberg.
After that relationship ended, Rod got married to Rachel Hunter in 1990. In 1992, the couple announced the birth of a daughter named Renee. In 1994, the ‘Reason to Believe’ singer and Hunter had a second child together, whom they named Liam. Five years later, in 1999, the two went their separate ways and divorced.
Before that divorce was officially finalized in 2006, Stewart began courting his current wife, Penny Lancaster. In 2005, Rod and Penny welcomed baby Alastair Wallace into their family. In 2007, they made things official by exchanging wedding vows. Then in 2011, the last member of the Stewart family joined the fold when Aiden Patrick was born.
While the majority of Stewart’s kids are all grown up and have left the nest so to speak, Stewart is still very close to each and every one of them. Rod may have had a few failed marriages, but he has always been deeply committed to trying to be the best father that he can be.
That’s why when the war broke about between Ukraine and Russia in 2022, he couldn’t just sit back and remain neutral. Every time that he flipped on the news, he saw tragic scenes of families fleeing for their lives and desperately seeking safety.
At the outset of the war, Ukrainians Olena and Rostyslav Kurlak and their five children, Taras, Roman, Kostya, Dymtro, and Marila, aged two to seventeen, fled their home country and crossed Europe’s borders to make it to the UK. The family knew that they were leaving everything and everyone that they knew and loved back home behind and weren’t certain when they would ever be able to return, but they had to do what they thought was best for them, given the challenging circumstances.
Without any money, a home, or the ability to speak English, the Kurlak’s were terrified until help came from a very unexpected source, Rod Stewart! The ‘Hot Legs’ musician funded their London life by getting them a house and having it furnished.
Not only that, but he also vowed to pay the rent and all bills for the three-story Berkshire townhouse for a full year. Apparently, Rod met them for the first time when he came out to visit their new home. When he made his arrival, they all came out dressed up in their traditional Ukrainian attire. They additionally made him a cup of tea and they all ended up enjoying chocolates and biscuits together despite the language-gap.
After seeing the atrocities that were affecting the Ukrainian people, Stewart knew that he couldn’t simply sit back and do nothing. Having been born shortly after the Second World War, Rod knew about the perils that people going through such a conflict might face. Reportedly, it was Rod’s nephew, Warren’s idea to host a Ukrainian family during their time of immense need.
Stewart’s nephew first suggested that they load a bunch of trucks up with supplies and deliver them to refugees of the conflict. While at the Ukraine border, the trucks picked up 16 refugees and took them to safety in Berlin.
Warren and his brother Gavin along with six other volunteers, were the ones that braved that trip while Stewart stayed behind. Wanting to do more to help, that’s when they came up with the idea of hosting a family in London.
The singer also gave jobs to two refugees on his Essex estate, while another got a gig working as Stewart’s gardener. When asked what he thought of Rod, Rostylav described him as a ‘great man’ who had saved his family from peril.
Aside from supporting the family with their material needs, Stewart also vowed to use his platform and music to support the people of Ukraine. Since embarking on his latest tour, Rod has made it a point to raise awareness for the needs of Ukrainian refugees at each one of his shows.
Rod’s Two Brothers Died Two Months Apart
In late November, Rod announced via Instagram that he was mourning the loss of his two brothers, who passed away within a span of just two months. His brother Bob died a little over eight weeks after his brother Don had passed on.
Stewart described his two brothers as his best mates while adding that they were ‘irreplaceable buddies’.
The aging ‘Da Ya Think I’m Sexy’ singer is the youngest of his since-deceased parents’ five children. He currently has two surviving sisters, Mary and Peggy.
Don Stewart was 94 when he passed away in September, just two days before Queen Elizabeth II died. At that time, Stewart posted that it had been a ‘devastating 48 hours’.
In the past, Rod has spoken very fondly of his siblings and said that they each helped raise him. He’s further said that his brothers were instrumental in supporting him and helping him get into music.
In 2019, Stewart revealed that he had been dealing with his own three-year battle with prostate cancer. Fortunately, at the moment, he appears to be in remission.
He Say’s He’ll Keep Singing His Raunchiest Song
Despite his advancing age, the 77-year-old rocker-turned-romantic crooner says that he will continue to sing one of his most popular but raunchy songs. The Mirror reported that he did at one point consider whether it was appropriate to keep singing the risque tune Hot Legs, but he says that there isn’t anything in his repertoire that he feels ashamed of belting out.
The song was released in ’78 and peaked at number five on the UK charts. It features saucy lines like ‘you can love me tonight if you want’, ‘you’re still in school’ and the clincher ‘bring your mother too’.
Discussing the song, Stewart explained that for a brief period, he considered retiring the number since it’s as he calls it a ‘shagging’ song. But if he did that, then he wouldn’t have any clue how to end his sets. For years, he’s wrapped up his performances with the track, and people still seem to love it.
Despite once being a relatively provocative rock star, Stewart says that his shows are much tamer these days than when he was younger. Back then, he says that all he was interested in was hooking up with women and drinker, and while he hasn’t yet joined the “pipe-and-slipper club”, he has gotten much better at taking care of himself.
In related news, Rod is planning on performing Hot Legs on his upcoming leg of his European tour.
Alright, well you’ve heard what we have to say. Before you move on to watching another one of our facts-packed videos, hop down into those comments and show us a little support by dropping us a line or two.
What are a few of your favorite Rod Stewart songs, and what are your thoughts on Sir Rod’s recent decision to not perform at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar? Let us know, and as always, thanks for watching!
