Ringo Starr Reveals Why He’s Making a Major Career Change

Ringo Starr is a household name for music fans around the world. But while most would associate his musical stylings with that of his former band, the Beatles, Starr is veering away from the genre in a big way.

The musician, 84, is instead going all in on country music.

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In a conversation with the Associated Press that was published on Nov. 15, Starr shared that he’s always had an affinity for country music, and his hometown in England had a lot to do with it.

“Liverpool, it’s the capital of country music in England because a lot of I think it stems from it being a port.” He continued, noting that that’s “why we got rock ‘n’ roll music physically, was because the lads on the boats would be going to America, they’d be going to Egypt, would be going all over. But they were bringing music in.”

Starr has always gravitated towards country music, saying “I've done 20 albums and there’s always a track that’s country-ish on each one.”

In 1970, he went so far as to record a fully country album, Beaucoups of Blues, but not since that second solo album has he dived so deeply back into the genre.

Now, as artists like Beyoncé that traditionally don’t create country music are going full steam ahead into the genre, Starr is joining them, though he says it’s not related to their pivots.

“Mine just came together. I mean, I didn’t think of any of that. I just thought, I’m going to do it,” he told the outlet.

Starr's newest album, Look Up, is slated for release in early January 2025.

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