Sex Pistols Star's Plea to Rolling Stones: Retire

The man the world came to know as Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols is still touring at age 69, but John Lydon wants some fellow music legends to hang it up. "By all means, the Rolling Stones should retire," Lydon said during a Good Morning Britain interview, reports Billboard. The dig came unexpectedly, and Lydon couldn't seem to resist piling on. Retiring is not for him, said Lydon, but "I'm not short of a song idea or two, so there's a difference." He then sarcastically worried about offending music lovers while adding, "to compare music lovers with the Rolling Stones is absurd."

The Stones are older, with Mick Jagger now 80, but they released their first new album of new material in nearly two decades in 2023 with the well-received Hackney Diamonds, notes People. The band hasn't issued a rejoinder, per the New York Post. Lydon, meanwhile, is starting a tour with his band Public Image Ltd. (More John Lydon stories.)