Mick Jagger paid a surprise visit to his old secondary school in the London suburb of Dartford, U.K., on Wednesday, November 19. The Rolling Stones frontman met with students and faculty while visiting Dartford Grammar School, and also helped celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Mick Jagger Centre, a performing arts facility located at the school that he co-founded in 2000.
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The center is the home of the Dartford Music School and Dartford Symphony Orchestra.
According to U.K. newspaper The London Standard, Jagger shared praise for the teachers at the facility, while also encouraging students to embrace music and the arts.
He said, “I would like to offer my thanks to all the music teachers at The Mick Jagger Centre and at the school who inspired children and young people in their musical careers, music and the arts to help us to understand what it’s like to be human, what it’s like to express our feelings and emotions.
Jagger added, “Singing and playing is a great way to express your feelings, whether they are feelings of anger, angst, tenderness or love. Music also brings us together in a common experience, whether we are singing in a choir, playing here in Dartford, or listening to a band at Wembley Stadium.”
Since 2003, the 82-year-old rock legend has funded a program at the center called Red Rooster Project. It provides music lessons and other music-related opportunities to children in Dartford.
According to a post on The Mick Jagger Centre’s social media pages, Jagger watched a performance by Red Rooster participants, and then gave a performance himself with his brother Chris.
More About Jagger’s Visit to the School
Jagger also met with and presented a trophy to the Dartford Grammar School’s basketball team. Mick played on the team when he was a Dartford student.
A video featuring some highlights from Jagger’s visit to school was post on Consequence’s TikTok page.
Meanwhile, Jagger also shared posted a series of photos from his visit on his socials. In addition, he posted a video clip of him singing the 1969 Rolling Stones classic “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” with some of the music students.
Mick accompanied the post with the following massage: “It was a great privilege for me to visit my old school today and meet some of the inspiring young students. I really enjoyed getting to hear them sing and play!”
Dartford Grammar School’s headmaster, Julian Metcalf, said Jagger’s visit was “very special and the icing on the cake.” Over the years, Mick has made a number of return visits to the school.
Jagger was born in Dartford. While attending the Dartford Grammar School, Mick met Keith Richards on a local train platform. The two—who had been classmate in elementary school—forged a friendship that eventually led to the formation of The Rolling Stones.
(Photo by Karwai Tang/WireImage)
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