Julian Lennon Sings his Father’s Legendary Song “Imagine”
Julian Lennon Imagine, son of vocalist John Lennon, has performed the legendary song from his father The Beatles’ band, Imagine, for the first time. Julian Lennon performed this song to help raise the money he will donate to Ukraine.
Julian Lennon performed an acoustic song in a room surrounded by candles. Sharing a video of his performance on YouTube, he wrote: “Today, for the first time, I’m publicly performing my Dad’s song Imagine. The song reflects the light at the end of the tunnel, which we all hope for.”
The cover of Imagine—formerly written by John Lennon and Yoko Ono—was created as part of the Stand Up For Ukraine campaign, a global fundraising effort broadcast from Warsaw, Poland. Furthermore, Julian Lennon added that he would only sing the song when it was nearing the end of the world, aka the apocalypse.
“I’ve always said that the only time I would consider singing Imagine would be if it was ‘End of the World’,” Lennon wrote of the show.
But “The war in Ukraine is an unimaginable tragedy,” he continued. “As a human being, and as an artist, I feel compelled to respond in the most significant way I can.”
In the song, Julian continues: “In this song, we are taken to a space, where love and togetherness become our reality, if only for a moment…. The song reflects the light at the end of the tunnel, that we all wish.”
The war in Ukraine was an unimaginable tragedy for Julian Lennon. As both a human being and an artist, Julian Lennon is driven to respond in the most significant way he can. The cover used is his effort to support the #StandUpForUkraine fundraising, organized by Global Citizen. The fundraising event in Warsaw was aimed at supporting fundraisers to raise $10 billion in pledges for Ukrainian refugees.
Last year, Julian Lennon said that watching The Beatles’ new documentary, Get Back, was a “life-changing” experience that “made me love my dad again”. Peter Jackson’s three-part film, which came to Disney+ last November, focuses on making the band’s penultimate studio album Let It Be, and features their final concert as a band, on the rooftops of London’s Savile Row, in their entirety.
Julian and his brother, Sean Lennon, attended a special screening of the documentary in Los Angeles ahead of the event hosted by Stella McCartney.
“What an amazing night,” Julian recalled in an Instagram post after the event. “First saw Get Back and then [attended] Stella’s event afterward. One true thing I can say about it all is that it has made me so proud, inspired & feel more love for me/our family, than ever before,” he added.
“This film has made me love my dad again, in a way that I can’t fully describe.”
Recently, Julian Lennon Imagine also released two new singles from his upcoming seventh studio album, Jude.
John Charles Julian Lennon (born 8 April 1963) is an English singer, songwriter, photographer, and philanthropist. He is the son of Beatles member John Lennon and his first wife, Cynthia, and he is named after his paternal grandmother, Julia Lennon.
Julian inspired three Beatles songs such as Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds (1967), Hey Jude (1968), and Good Night (1968). His parents divorced in 1968 after his father had an affair with Yoko Ono.
Julian Lennon began his musical career in 1984 with the album Valotte, best known for its lead single Too Late for Goodbyes, and has since released six more albums. He has held exhibitions of fine art photography and has published several children’s books. In 2006, Julian Lennon produced the environmental documentary WhaleDreamers, which won eight international awards. In 2007, he founded The White Feather Foundation, which states the aim of its mission is to address “environmental and humanitarian concerns”.
In 2018, executive Julian Lennon produced the documentary Women of the White Buffalo, which chronicles the lives of the women living on the Pine Ridge Lakota Indian Reservation. In 2020, executive Lennon produced the Netflix documentary Kiss the Ground about regenerative agriculture.
Previously, Julian Lennon had a bad relationship with his father. After the murder of his father on December 8, 1980, Julian Lennon voiced anger and hatred against him. Julian is upset to hear that his father’s peace and love are constantly being celebrated. He even said his father was a hypocrite.
“A father can speak about peace and love out loud to the world but he can never show it to the people he deems most meaningful to him: his wife and son. How can you talk about peace and love and have a family? bit by bit—no communication, adultery, divorce? You can’t do it, not if you’re honest and true to yourself.”
In his musical career, Julian Lennon Imagine has scored at least seven albums including Valotte (1984), The Secret Value of Daydreaming (1986), Mr. Jordan (1989), Help Yourself (1991), Photograph Smile (1998), Everything Changes (2011), and this year’s Jude.
