Just recently, the Rolling Stones announced their decision to postpone their North American and Canadian leg of their 2019 “No Filter” tour which would have ran from April 20^thto July 29^th. When the postponement was originally announced, fans where provided with the information that doctors had advised Mick Jagger to undergo some medical treatment before continuing on this tour. The Rolling Stones also informed their fans that Jagger is expected to make a full recovery to continue on the stage. It has been announced that the tour is expected to resume in July. They also advised fans to hold on to their tickets as these tickets will continue to work for the new dates that will be announced. Everyone within the Rolling Stones apologized immensely.

It was later discovered that Jagger will be having a heart value surgery, which is a fairly serious but also very successful surgery. I am incredibly impressed that Jagger will be continuing this tour after such a surgery. It’s a bit sad that Jagger and the Rolling Stones have a need to apologize so profusely for such a serious health issue that warrants more attention than continuing a tour. I looked at Twitter to see the responses of their fans, and almost all are positive comments wishing for a speedy recovery and how there is “no need to apologize” as his health is obviously more important. I was glad to see such responses because sometimes people forget that musicians are human and deserve respect just like everyone else.

Many people view musicians or celebrities as these almost super human gods that can be belittled for our enjoyment in very cruel ways. Or they view musicians and celebrities as people who do not deserve the same boundaries and needs that we all have. Many celebrities have serious mental and physical health problems that they hide away for two reasons: one is simply because celebrities also deserve privacy and two because celebrities sometimes feel their own health is a burden on their fans. It breaks my heart to hear this when anyone says this as mental and physical health of oneself should be a top priority for everyone everywhere. Jagger’s situation seems like one where people can forget this. In some cases, not necessarily this one, fans then proceed to essentially shame the musician or celebrity for trying to put their mental and physical health first above their creative work.

I chose the song “Paint It Black” by the Rolling Stones as it is one of their most iconic songs of all time and it was one of the very first songs I heard as a child. After having looked and thought about the song lyrics more, they are fairly dark. I thought it was a good contrast to how Jagger’s and the Rolling Stones’ situation is as it is turning out fairly positive. Jagger was even seen hanging out with his family and is clearly very happy and joyful. So give the song a listen and remember to treat one another with kindness.