Get the latest gossip

‘I don’t like being revered’: Brian Eno on art, AI, and why he hates talking about David Bowie

He’s worked with some of the biggest names in music, but his latest book claims there’s an artist in all of us. Brian Eno and co-author Bette Adriaanse discuss the myth of genius, and how to really unlock your creativity

I’ve been anxious about this interview, not least because of a warning from Eno’s assistant to avoid talking about his musical history, which he doesn’t feel is relevant; she apologises for flagging it up but thought she had “better be safe than sorry”. I end with an obligatory current affairs question – what does he think of the new British government (we’re speaking before Trump won the US election) – and he’s quick off the bat: “crushing disappointment that they haven’t taken any principled stand on Gaza at all. Moving his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame trophy (for Roxy Music) out of the way, he wafts tomato leaf absolute in front of our noses, and then a strange, desiccated grey substance at the bottom of a bottle that looks like it came out of a souk – “It did”.

Get the Android app