Brian May became the latest music icon to be knighted by the British Royal Family.

The Queen guitarist can now be addressed as “Sir” after being recognized in the 2023 New Year Honours list. May was awarded the rank of Knight Bachelor for his services to music and charity. Per Britannica, a Knight Bachelor is the oldest English knighthood ranking.

Queen shared a photo of May being knighted by King Charles III. The photo was captioned, “Arise Sir Brian May. Brian’s investiture as a Knight of The Realm took place today at Buckingham Palace. The knighthood was presented to Brian by His Royal Highness, King Charles. Many congratulations, Sir Brian!” May shared the same image to his personal Instagram and captioned the photo, “No words!”

May is far from the first musician to be recognized with a knighthood from the British Royal Family. Keep scrolling to see a number of music icons knighted by the late Queen Elizabeth II.

13 Iconic Musicians Knighted by Queen Elizabeth II

• Barry Gibb

  Share

  Sir Barry was knighted in 2018 for his services to the music and charity. While Gibb spent most of his formative years in Australia, he was born in the U.K. on the Isle of Man and has held dual U.K.-U.S. citizenship since 2009.

• Bob Geldof

  Share

  Geldof received an Honorary Knighthood in 1986 for his charitable contributions stemming from Band Aid and Live Aid. Since Geldof is not a British citizen, he cannot be called “Sir.”

• George Martin

  Share

  Sir George was knighted in 1996 for his services to music.
• Paul McCartney

  Share

  Sir Paul was knighted in 1997. In 1965, he and the rest of the Beatles received Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) honors.

• Elton John

  Share

  Sir Elton was knighted in 1998. He would later be named a member of the Order of Companions of Honour, the highest honor that can be bestowed by the British Royal Family, in November 2021. Per the British Royal Family's website, "The Companion of Honour is a special award granted to those who have made a major contribution to the arts, science, medicine, or government lasting over a long period of time. The members, of which there are 65 at any one time, currently include actress Dame Maggie Smith, Lord Coe, Stephen Hawking, John Major and Desmond Tutu."

• Ravi Shankar

  Share

  Shankar received an Honorary Knighthood in 2001 for his contributions to music. He cannot be called “Sir” due to not being a British citizen.
• Mick Jagger

  Share

  Sir Mick was knighted in 2002 for his services to music.

• Tom Jones

  Share

  Sir Tom was knighted in 2006. He was previously honored as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1999.

• Bono

  Share

  Born Paul Hewson, Bono received an Honorary Knighthood in 2007 for his contributions to music and for his years of humanitarian work. Since he is not a British citizen, Bono cannot be called “Sir.”
• Rod Stewart

  Share

  Sir Rod was knighted in 2016. He had previously received Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) honors in 2007.

• Van Morrison

  Share

  Morrison was knighted in 2016 for his contributions to music. While Irish, Morrison is from Belfast, Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K. Thus, he may be called “Sir.”

• Ray Davies

  Share

  Sir Ray was knighted in 2017 for his services to the arts.
• Ringo Starr

  Share

  Sir Ringo was knighted in 2018. In 1965, he and the rest of the Beatles received Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) honors.

Sign me up for the WRAT email newsletter!

Join ClubRAT for access to all the perks delivered right to your inbox from Jersey's Concert Connection! Get exclusive presale codes for upcoming shows, the latest updates with your favorite rockers, contest info, and more.

First Name *

Last Name

Email *

Subscribe

By clicking "Subscribe" I agree to the website's terms of Service and Privacy Policy. I understand I can unsubscribe at any time.