Sir Elton John is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his festive anthem Step Into Christmas with the help of Kate Moss, Jourdan Dunn, Charlotte Tilbury and others.
The Rocket Man singer, 76, is pictured in an electric blue suit with glitter detailing in new images released for a beauty campaign from make-up brand Charlotte Tilbury.
John – whose custom-made suit was designed by Donatella Versace – is joined in the festive campaign by models Moss and Dunn, actress and activist Michaela Jae Rodriguez and musician Rina Sawayama, all dancing to Step Into Christmas.
Charlotte Tilbury Beauty is the founding beauty partner of The Rocket Fund – the Elton John Aids Foundation’s £100 million drive to fight Aids, and the new campaign aims to shine a light on this work.
“I had so much fun stepping into beauty magic and working with Charlotte and her muses to bring this fabulous campaign to life,” John said.
“We have the tools to end HIV and Aids – it’s the stigma that’s holding us back.”
He established the foundation in 1992, inspired to take action after his friend, Indiana teenager Ryan White, died of Aids. It is one of the top 10 philanthropic funders of HIV/Aids grants worldwide, and aims to end the epidemic by 2030.
Moss, 49, is pictured alongside John in a shimmering red sequinned gown with an open back.
The supermodel, who is one of Tilbury’s ‘beauty muses’ and first met the beauty mogul on a magazine shoot in the 1990s, has long been a champion of the brand.
Moss was one of the first celebrities to wear the cult lipstick Pillow Talk on the red carpet, and became the face of its first fragrance in 2016.
Moss said she is “so proud to be part of this campaign” and added: “I’ve always been so inspired by Elton’s incredible work with the Elton John Aids Foundation, it has made such a difference to reducing the stigma around HIV and Aids.”
Tilbury, 50, said: “Elton has been a huge inspiration to me my entire life. He is a national treasure, the ultimate renaissance man, a polymath, a musical genius adored by generations, a true creative, champion of the arts and, of course, a fashion icon.”
Hold The Girl singer Sawayama, 33, also appears in the campaign, wearing a black feathered column gown with Nineties-inspired spaghetti straps.
The Japanese-British singer joined John onstage during his headlining Glastonbury show to perform Don’t Go Breaking My Heart.
“Elton has been the most incredible mentor,” Sawayama said.
“We met a few years ago and I’ve been so lucky to work on so many exciting projects with him. I’ve always been inspired by Elton and David’s (Furnish, John’s husband and chairman of the foundation) unwavering commitment to the fight against HIV and Aids.”
British model Dunn, 33 – who is a familiar face in Tilbury’s beauty campaigns – wears a silver sequinned cowl-neck gown with a thigh-high leg slit and a matching headpiece.
“Charlotte’s partnership with the Elton John Aids Foundation’s Rocket Fund is going to be transformative for so many young people,” Dunn said.
“It will help those most at risk of HIV and Aids access the support they so desperately need. I feel really proud to be a part of this campaign that has such a positive story to tell – we’re sending a message of love, joy, acceptance and hope.”
The campaign debuts Charlotte Tilbury Beauty’s new holiday collection, including the new limited edition Rock Lips lipsticks (retailing at £29 each) and Rock Star Bag (£50) – a clutch-meets-make-up bag – all inspired by John’s glittering outfits from the 1970s.
The brand was announced as the official founding beauty partner of The Rocket Fund in June, and says its contribution will help more than 40,000 young people most at risk of HIV and Aids access life-saving services and support.
