Real reason Rick Astley is NEVER gonna give up performing this song

18 September 2025, 11:25

As Rick Astley prepares for his The Reflection 2026 UK tour, fans can rest assured this hit will always be on the setlist.

Rick Astley is no ‘one hit wonder’.

Despite being best known for his 1987 chart-topper ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’, the ‘Together Forever’ singer had several more chart successes in his early career, and achieved a second UK No. 1 album with 50 in 2016.

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But unlike some artists who would rather move fans’ attention on from their earliest hits to their more recent music, Rick doesn't shy away from embracing his biggest song’s enduring popularity.

Speaking with Smooth Radio to celebrate his recent The Reflection Tour news, Rick opened up about why he will never give up performing ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ with pride.

Watch Rick Astley's full Smooth Radio interview below:

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“I see it in the eyes of certain artists where they have to play a certain song and they’d rather not, and I’m a bit the other way,” Rick told Angie Greaves.

“I'm a bit like ‘Well at least they’ll remember this one,’” he added.

Comfort music

Rick remains humble about his musical success story, admitting he still finds it “nuts” how ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ changed his life.

“I didn’t think to myself [when starting out] I’d be 60 and still doing [music],” he reflected, suggesting he’d have been “deluded” to have more confidence.

Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up (Official Video) (4K Remaster)

Still, the 59-year-old's early career success allowed him to retire from music at 27, and he credits this break from “all the nonsense” of the industry with helping him to still enjoy performing his old hits in later life.

He also finds ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’’s continued popularity across generations a welcome aid in bringing less familiar audiences, such as festival crowds, on board with performances.

“Once I’m up there doing it, I get lost in it and I just enjoy it [but] I kind of know that I’ve got that song, ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’, at the end of the gig and go ‘Well at least they’ll know that one,’” he said.

"It frightens the band"

Ahead of his The Reflection Tour next year, Rick is not planning on releasing any new music.

Rick Astley - Never Gonna Stop (Official Video)

“In terms of making a new record right now, I’m kind of enjoying being off,” Rick admitted.

However, the artist – whose last album, Are We There Yet? was released in 2023 – is still working on new music, and may perform a new song or two at his concerts next year.

“I'd like to at least play one new song on tour, because it’s always fun and it frightens the band,” he joked. “But I just don’t think I want to make a record right now...

“If I make one, I think I’d like to make one with a bunch of other people,” he added, hinting at what fans might expect from the ‘She Wants to Dance with Me’ star in a few years’ time.