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Keith Richards: ‘I’ll Croak When I Croak’

Photo: Andrew Benge/Redferns

Keith Richards is 76 years old and still happy to be anywhere, as one Larry McPherson once put it. In a new GQ interview, to promote a reissue of his solo album Live at the Hollywood Palladium with his band the X-Pensive Winos, Richards reflected on his mortality. Asked if the Rolling Stones had plans for their 60th anniversary, in 2022, Richards simply replied, “Well, the plans are to still actually all be alive.” He went on to flick at the COVID-19 pandemic, adding, “First off, I’m going to get through this year and see how we handle next year. Because I think at the moment, there are more problems than a Rolling Stones celebration. I’m very glad that we’re all here, but I’ll leave it at that if I can.” The end of the conversation circled back to Richards’s life and death, with the magazine asking the question on all of our minds. “People have been wondering in interviews when you’re going to die for the last 50 years,” the interviewer said. “How satisfying is it to still be here?” Richards replied, “Every day is a pleasure. I mean, I don’t wish to defy anybody’s predictions and I’m really not interested in them. But I’ll croak when I croak and everybody will know.” And there you have it!

Keith Richards: ‘I’ll Croak When I Croak’