The Rocket Man says he is 'happy to be pranked' if it means helping bring the gay rights issue 'back into the spotlight.'
- Sep 17, 2015
AceShowbiz - Elton John believed he'd just got a phone call from Vladimir Putin. The British singer posted an enthusiastic message on Instagram, telling his followers that he had a successful conversation over the phone with the Russian president and would meet him soon.
"Thank-you to President Vladimir Putin for reaching out and speaking via telephone with me today. I look to forward to meeting with you face-to-face to discuss LGBT equality in Russia. @president_vladimir_putin @ejaf #lgbt #lgbtrights #ShareTheLove," he posted on Monday.
The following day, Putin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied it to the media. The president's press secretary told Russian daily Komsomolskaya Pravda, "It turned out that Elton John was really waiting for this call, and so he immediately believed it really was a conversation with the people who we said we were."
On Wednesday, Vladimir "Vovan" Krasnov and Alexei "Lexus" Stolyarov, who are famous for prank-calling Ukrainian and Russian celebrities, admitted the phone call was their doing. The Russian television hosts of a state-owned channel called the Rocket Man, pretending to be Putin and Peskov.
Vovan and Lexus decided to prank-called Sir Elton after they heard the singer told BBC that he would like to meet Putin to discuss gay rights. "Alexei has great English, so he introduced himself as Dmitry Peskov (Mr Putin's spokesman) and translated our conversation. I was Vladimir Putin," Vovan said.
The LGBT advocate was heard saying during the prank call, "I'm a musician and a philanthropic person and a humanitarian. I'm not a politician, but I would love to sit down with the president and discuss things face to face because I think we can solve many issues together."
After Vovan and Lexus' admission, Elton John responded on his Instagram, "Pranks are funny. Homophobia, however is never funny. I love Russia and my offer to talk to President Putin about LGBT rights still stands. I will always stand up for those that are being degraded and discriminated against."
He added, "If this unfortunate incident has helped push this vital issue back into the spotlight, then I am happy to be pranked on this occasion. @ejaf @president_vladimir_putin #lgbt #lgbtrights #ShareTheLove."
