John Lennon’s son speaks about the ‘great privilege’ of continuing his father’s legacy

Growing up with one of the most famous musicians in history, Sean Ono Lennon sees his father’s legacy not as a “burden”, but as a “great privilege” that allows him to carry on the late John Lennon’s artistic legacy.

Speaking at the 2025 Grammy Awards, Sean shared his thoughts with People and other reporters on balancing the responsibility of preserving his father’s music while also creating his own.

“In terms of balancing and being the custodian of (my dad’s) music and my own music, it’s not a burden. It’s honestly a great privilege for me,” he said.

“I just feel so lucky that I get to do good by my dad, you know, It seems like a privilege, as his son, to be able to give back. He gave the world so much, and he gave me so much, and I just feel really honoured to be able to do justice by him if I can.”

While John found global success in the 1960s with The Beatles alongside Ringo Starr, George Harrison, and Sir Paul McCartney, Sean began releasing music in 1998 with the record Into The Sun. His second studio album Friendly Fire followed in 2006, and most recently he released Asterisms with plans to re-release one of his late father’s projects.

Sean was only five years old when his father was killed. In a previous interview with People, Sean revealed that he got to know his father through his music and had to reconstruct him through “fragments.”

“I never played music because I was good at it,” Lennon told the publication.

“I lost my father and I didn’t know how to fill that void.

“Learning how to play his songs on guitar was a way to process the loss with an activity that made me feel connected to him.”

Watching archival footage was another way Sean could connect with his father and understand him better.

“You’re constructing somebody out of fragments,” he said.

“I grew up mostly knowing my dad through pictures and recordings, because he wasn’t around.

“So whenever I hear my dad saying anything that I haven’t heard before, even just a little moment, it means so much to me.”

-with BANG.