Julian and Sean Lennon Turn Their Father’s Anthem Into a Prayer Sent Skyward
LOS ANGELES — Written in 1971, “Imagine” became John Lennon’s eternal anthem of peace. Last night, his sons Julian and Sean turned it into something deeply personal.
The stage held two pianos, facing each other. Two brothers, connected by blood and absence, sat down together. Julian, 62, silver-haired, carrying the weight of a childhood shaped by his father’s departure. Sean, 50, who was five when John died, lifelong guardian of a vision he never got to know firsthand.
They didn’t introduce the song. They simply began.
“If the World Truly Needed It”
Julian had long avoided performing “Imagine.” He once said he’d only sing it “if the world truly needed it.”
For decades, the world kept needing. Julian kept silent.
Last night, he decided the time had come.
The Performance
The first notes emerged from both pianos simultaneously. Julian’s voice entered first—weathered, careful, approaching something sacred. Sean joined on the second verse, higher and clearer.
“Imagine there’s no countries…”
The audience didn’t sing along. They simply listened. This wasn’t a singalong. This was a conversation across decades.
Halfway through, Julian’s voice faltered. Just slightly. A breath caught. Sean kept the melody steady—an anchor, a reassurance.
They finished together. The final piano notes hung in the air longer than they should have.
What It Meant
Two men, born to the same father under different circumstances, raised in different houses with different memories, finally standing together beneath the weight of a song that has outlived the man who wrote it.
“It felt like love sent skyward,” one audience member said. “Like they weren’t singing to us at all. They were singing to him.”
A Message to Heaven
John Lennon left this world in December 1980. He never saw his sons grow up. Never watched them become the men they are.
Last night, for four minutes, they reached back.
“Imagine all the people living life in peace…”
Julian once said he’d only sing it if the world truly needed it.
Last night, the world listened. And maybe, somewhere beyond listening, John did too.
Imagine there’s no heaven. It’s easy if you try. But last night, for anyone watching, heaven didn’t seem so far away.
