Lizzo In Tears At Flute Hero James Galway’s Xmas Message
Lizzo was in tears of joy after receiving a seasonal greeting from one of her musical idols, flautist James Galway.
Galway, known as ‘the man with the golden flute’ and widely regarded the world’s first flute superstar, sent a video in which he plays We Wish You a Merry Christmas surrounded by festive décor. Following the few bars of music, the 83-year-old adds: “Merry Christmas, Lizzo, from your number one fan!”
On Instagram Stories, Lizzo reacted to the message saying, “YALL – SIR James Galway wished ME a merry Christmas”, following the video with a clip of her wiping back tears.
Posting the video again to Twitter, Lizzo declared Sir James’ message “the greatest gift” this Christmas.
THIS IS THE GREATEST GIFT @sirjamesgalway WISHED *ME* A MERRY CHRISTMAS!! PRICE WENT UP? pic.twitter.com/aWQLxl4XWg
— FOLLOW @YITTY (@lizzo) December 26, 2022
My reaction: https://t.co/J8BlIml37O pic.twitter.com/FdmYfajUxv
— FOLLOW @YITTY (@lizzo) December 26, 2022
Lizzo told CBS News in 2019 that when she began learning to the play the flute in fifth grade, she listened obsessively to Galway’s album The Man with the Golden Flute (1976).
To date, Galway has released over 50 albums spanning a variety of styles, from Bach and Chopin to Japanese and Irish folk music, and performs on several tracks from Howard Shore’s The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. In 2004, he was given the President’s Merit Award from the Recording Academy at the Grammy’s Salute to Classical Music.
In 2020, two years before his Christmas message, Sir James expressed his enthusiasm for her music, tweeting a video of himself playing flute and saying he was a “real fan” of Lizzo, inviting her to celebrate St Patrick’s Day with him in New York.
Lizzo was invited in September this year to play a priceless, 200-year-old crystal flute gifted to former American president James Madison in 1813 at CD’s Capital One Arena.