Sting refuses to keep wearing his hearing aids as he heard a lot of "s**t".
The 65-year-old musician – real name Gordon Sumner – recently admitted to being "fairly deaf", but says he won’t wear the devices that help him hear more clearly as it means he ends up listening to more than he bargained for.
Speaking to US radio station Sirius XM, the former Police frontman said: "I tried wearing a hearing aid, but I heard more than I wanted to hear! People talk a lot of s**t!"
Although the ‘Englishman in New York’ hitmaker refuses to wear his hearing aids, he claimed that his upcoming album ’57th & 9th’ – named after the daily route that he walks through the streets of New York City – was helped greatly by being able to hear "people’s phone conversations".
He added: "Walking has always been important to me. The binary rhythm of walking invokes narrative. 57th & 9th became this taking-stock point.
"You could write a play just by listening to people’s phone conversations on the street in New York. The energy of New York gave [the album] an urgency."
Meanwhile, the ‘Shape of My Heart’ singer aims to perform tracks from the album at his upcoming concert in Paris, France, on Saturday (12.11.16).
Sting will be performing at the re-opening of the Bataclan theatre, marking the one-year anniversary since shocking terrorist attacks at the venue killed almost 100 people during a performance from Eagles of Death Metal.
In a statement released about the performance, Sting said: "In re-opening the Bataclan, we have two important tasks to reconcile. First, to remember and honour those who lost their lives in the attack a year ago, and second to celebrate the life and the music that this historic theatre represents.
"In doing so. We hope to respect the memory as well as the life affirming spirit of those who fell. We shall not forget them."