All of the artists who turned down King Charles' coronation concert
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King Charles' big day is finally upon us, and the whole nation is invited to celebrate with a huge concert at Windsor Castle. It's a historic event - but not everyone is interested in taking part.
The concert welcomes the likes of Take That, Lionel Richie and Katy Perry to the stage for the second day of coronation celebrations on Sunday (7 May), allowing people to party into the night before a nice Bank Holiday lie-in on Monday.
Buckingham Palace promised 'global music icons and contemporary stars' would be making an appearance, but while there might be a few surprises, there are some musicians who have outright rejected the opportunity.
See who turned down the King's invitation below.
Elton John
He might be British royalty in his own right, but the music icon passed on the opportunity to perform at the coronation due to conflicts with his ongoing tour.
John's team confirmed the invitation to Rolling Stone, but explained: "Due to his European tour, which sees him performing in Germany the Friday before then again soon after the Windsor concert, he isn't able to make the dash to the UK work."
Tour dates for John show he doesn't actually have any performances scheduled on the night of the coronation concert, though he does have a show in Hamburg on 5 May and Berlin on 8 May.
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Harry Styles
If it's not a sushi restaurant - or one of the other hundreds of venues Styles has played recently - then the former One Direction star apparently isn't interested.
Styles looks to have been having some time to himself after his show in Tokyo on 29 March, and while he doesn't appear to have another concert scheduled until 13 May, he reportedly declined the chance to fill the time by singing for the new king.
A source familiar with the matter claimed the ongoing tour was one of the reasons for declining, and told The Sun that Styles couldn't get 'key band members together as they'll be on much-needed downtime'.
The Spice Girls
Ginger Spice might be known for wearing the Union Jack dress, but she's not scheduled to sing for the country on Sunday.
Charles has previously made clear that he's a fan of the Spice Girls, saying during a meeting with them in South Africa: "It is the second greatest moment in my life. The greatest was the first time that I met them."
It's understandable, then, that the King might want them to spice up his coronation day, but a source told The Sun the group were unable to get together to rehearse.
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Kylie Minogue
She comes from the land Down Under, but Minogue has been a popular face in British music for decades.
Minogue previously performed at Queen Elizabeth II's 92nd birthday celebration in 2018 and was reportedly pitched to perform again for the coronation, but an insider told Mail Online that such a concert might not sit well with the folks back home.
"Kylie has been an honorary Brit for many, many years, and admires the royal family and everything that they do. But she is also a passionate Australian and has read the room in a country that could very soon become a republic," the source said.
Adele
Adele didn't give much of a reason for turning down the coronation concert, with the Mail Online reporting simply that she was too busy. It's not the most elaborate excuse, but when you're one of the biggest pop stars in the world, I imagine your calendar does fill up pretty quickly.
An insider told the Mail Online Adele's decision to decline the offer was a 'massive disappointment', describing her as a 'titan' of the showbiz industry and adding: "It’s such a shame."
So it's safe to say there'll be a whole lot of popular tracks that fans won't get to hear when tuning in to the concert, but hopefully those who did accept the invitation will put on a jolly good show.
Featured Image Credit: Matt Crossick / Alamy PjrNews / Alamy
Topics: King Charles III, UK News, Music, Ed Sheeran, Adele
