What does EGOT mean? Details explored as Elton John joins the club with his Emmy win

A portrait of Elton John (Image via official Instagram @eltonjohn)
A portrait of Elton John (Image via official Instagram @eltonjohn)

On Monday, January 15, Elton John won the Best Variety Special (Live) award at the 2024 Emmy Awards for his show Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium. This win makes him the 19th person to achieve the coveted EGOT status, EGOT referring to the four awards: Emmy Awards, Grammy Awards, Oscar Awards, and Tony Awards, respectively.

The 76-year-old joins a list of other EGOT winners that includes personalities such as Mel Brooks, Rita Moreno, Jennifer Hudson, and Viola Davis, among others.

The singer, recovering from a recent knee surgery and thus unable to attend the award ceremony, elaborated on his feelings about winning said award via a post on his official Instagram page on January 15, 2024, stating:

"We won an Emmy and I am on cloud nine!! Receiving this recognition is a testament to the passion and dedication of everyone involved, and I am so deeply grateful."

The singer continued:

"Thank you to all the fans, friends, and collaborators who have supported me throughout the years. Honoured to have joined the hallowed ranks of EGOT winners, here’s to the joy of music and the magic it brings to our lives!"

Elton John previously won two Oscars

Elton John won the first of his EGOT award categories, the Grammy Award, in 1987 with his single That's What Friends Are For. The single, written by Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager, won the Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal Award at the 1987 Grammy Awards.

The singer then won Best Original Song at the 1994 Oscars, also known as the Academy Awards, for the single Can You Feel the Love Tonight, which was part of the soundtrack of the Lion King musical adaptation by Roger Allers.

In 2000, the singer scored the soundtrack for the musical Aida, which featured lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical, based on an Italian-language opera of the same name by the late 19th-century composer Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi, won the Best Original Score award at the 2000 Tony Award.

With the current Emmy Award win for the singer, that rounds off all four of the categories. As mentioned above, the singer joins an exclusive list containing just 18 other names, which are listed below in no particular order:

  • Richard Rodgers
  • Helen Hayes
  • Rita Moreno
  • John Gielgud
  • Audrey Hepburn
  • Marvin Hamlisch
  • Jonathan Tunick
  • Mel Brooks
  • Mike Nichols
  • Whoopi Goldberg
  • Scott Rudin
  • Robert Lopez
  • John Legend
  • Andrew Lloyd Webber
  • Tim Rice
  • Alan Menken
  • Jennifer Hudson
  • Viola Davis

Aside from his status as an EGOT member, Elton John is also known for his work on the seventh studio album, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, which was released on October 5, 1973. The multi-platinum-certified album peaked as a chart-topper on the UK, Australian, and Canadian album charts, respectively.


The Disney+ special, Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium, that won Elton John an Emmy, focused on his show at the Los Angeles baseball stadium as part of the singer’s farewell tour.

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