Billy Ocean will never retire because he still has so much he wants to say in his music.
The ‘When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going’ hitmaker was presented with the International Achievement prize at The Ivor Novello Awards in recognition of his songwriting abilities and for his incredible five-decade spanning career.
Billy, 68, is still busy touring and recording and although he is approaching his 70th birthday he has no intention of calling time on his career because his music makes him and his fans so happy.
Speaking to the BANG Showbiz at the ceremony in London on Thursday (31.05.18), he said: "Retire? No man, and do what? You can retire but you get to a certain age and you look at life and you’re doing something that’s making people happy, why should you take that away from them? When you’re making them happy, you’re making yourself happy so why stop? Look, if you’re ill then you have to stop, but whilst I have my health I’m going to keep going."
Billy hasn’t released a studio album since 2013’s ‘Here Are You’ but he is writing for a new record and insist his lyrics are getting more "bold" as he gets older and wiser.
He said: "I’m just as creative now, when I’m ready when songs are needed, something happens and I write. In-between I’m so busy doing other things that I don’t find the time to write … My appetite for writing songs will never change, it’s about saying something and I feel I’ve got so much to say and to sing. As I get older I think I’ve become bolder about what I’ve got to say, I’ll never be over political but I do have things I want to say."