Former Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr have announced plans for a rare onstage reunion.
The two surviving members of the iconic Liverpool band will perform together at the charity gig VetsAid at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on January 29, with The Killers, St Vincent and others also on the bill.
Spearheaded by Eagles member Joe Walsh, the event will raise funds for Nevada military veterans and their families. An exclusive pre-sale for veterans and active service members begins this morning at 10am local time. An artist presale begins at the same time on Wednesday, ahead of general sale on Friday.
The show will mark McCartney, 84, and Starr’s, 86, first time onstage together since December 2024, when Starr joined his former bandmate onstage in London at the finale of McCartney’s Got Back tour. Starr played drums on Beatles classics Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Helter Skelter.
Joe Walsh comments in a statement: “Having spent the past two years at [local multimedia venue] the Sphere and working with the hardworking people of Las Vegas, I want to show them my gratitude and respect. This city has taken such good care of me and my family that it would be my privilege to give back to the large veteran community here and to their families.”
The news follows a report from Forbes on Monday that McCartney has become a billionaire, with his net worth valued at $1.4 billion (£1.04 billion). The publication states that the singer/bassist is the third-richest musician in the world, after rapper Jay-Z at $2.8 billion (£2.01 billion) and singer/songwriter Taylor Swift at $2 billion (£1.49 billion).
Forbes attributes McCartney’s much of enormous wealth to his founding of the publishing company MPL Communications in 1969, which let him “control his solo career publishing and master recordings, giving him a much larger cut of his future royalties”. He has also acquired copyrights from other artists such as Buddy Holly.
In addition, McCartney remains an active recording and touring musician, having released 27 albums under his own name (or with his solo band Wings) since the Beatles’ dissolution in 1970. His latest, The Boys Of Dungeon Lane, came out in May and topped the UK Albums chart. He has also performed and/or co-written a number of chart-topping hit songs.
In 2028, McCartney, Starr and the two late Beatles, guitarists/vocalists George Harrison and John Lennon, will be the subjects of individual biopics released simultaneously as The Beatles: A Four-Film Cinematic Event. The films are all being directed by Sam Mendes, with Paul Mescal set to portray McCartney. Barry Keoghan will play Ringo Starr, while Harris Dickinson will play John Lennon and Joseph Quinn will play George Harrison.
