Sean Lennon facts: John Lennon son's girlfriend, songs and friendship with Michael Jackson revealed

3 November 2023, 11:46

Sean Lennon is the only child of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and has since gone on to have his own music career.

He's back in the spotlight thanks to a new radio documentary about his late father, including interviews with Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Elton John and his half-brother Julian Lennon.

But what has Sean got up to in recent years and what kind of music does he make? Here's your handy guide:

1. Who is Sean Ono Lennon?

   Sean Lennon is a British-American musician, songwriter and producer.

   He is the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and has been a member of bands Cibo Matto, the Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, the Claypool Lennon Delirium and his parents' group the Plastic Ono Band.

   He has released two solo albums: Into the Sun (1998) and Friendly Fire (2006).

2. How old is Sean Lennon?

   

   Sean Lennon was born at New York–Presbyterian Hospital in New York City on October 9, 1975, his father's 35th birthday.

   He celebrated his 47th birthday in 2023.

   Sean is of Japanese descent on his mother Yoko Ono's side and English, Welsh and Irish descent on his father's side. His half-brother is Julian Lennon.

   Sir Elton John is his godfather.

   When Sean was born, John Lennon became a house husband, and cared for his young son until his death on December 8, 1980.

   Sean attended pre-school in Tokyo, and was educated at the exclusive private boarding school Institut Le Rosey in Rolle, Switzerland. He later attended Columbia University for three semesters, before dropping out to focus on his music.

3. What is Sean Lennon's relationship with brother Julian?

   View this post on Instagram

   Was fun having this guy in New York for a bit.

   A post shared by Sean Ono Lennon (@sean_ono_lennon) on Mar 18, 2019 at 6:22am PDT

   Despite John Lennon leaving Julian out of his will, and despite Julian’s having to buy back his own father’s belongings at auction as his stepmother Yoko would not give them to him at the time, Julian and Sean are thought to be close.

   When Sean spoke about his older brother at the opening of Julian’s photography exhibition in 2010, he and his mother showed up to support him.

   “Julian is the reason I started playing music,” Sean said. “Because when I was a kid, when his first record, Vallotte hit the charts, it was the biggest thing…”

   His mother, Yoko, added: “Julian is the biggest thing in our family.”

4. What is Sean Lennon's net worth?

   According to Celebrity Net Worth, Sean has a net worth of around $200 million (£154m).

5. What music has Sean Lennon released recently?

   

   Miley Cyrus, Mark Ronson ft. Sean Ono Lennon - "Happy Xmas (War is Over)" Official Performance |Vevo

   In 2014, his band the Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger released the album Midnight Sun, earning critical acclaim.

   In 2018, he collaborated with Miley Cyrus and Mark Ronson for a cover of Yoko Oko and John Lennon's 'Happy Xmas (War is Over)'."

   In 2019, he released the album South of Reality, with his band the Claypool Lennon Delirium, which also features Primus' lead singer Les Claypool.

6. Is Sean Lennon married?

   

   Sean Lennon is in a relationship with musician Charlotte Kemp Muhl, who he first met at the Coachella Festival in 2005.

   Lennon was 29 at the time, while she was 17. They stayed friends for a while before finding love.

7. Was Sean Lennon friends with Michael Jackson?

   

   In his youth, Sean was friends with Michael Jackson at the height of the famous singer's fame.

   In 1988, Sean appeared in the cast for Michael Jackson's film Moonwalker, playing a character also called Sean.

   By this point, Jackson had purchased the rights to the Beatles' back catalogue and included a cover of 'Come Together' in the film.

   Speaking about knowing Jackson in 2019, Sean told Exclaim: "He was the coolest dude I'd ever met for sure. I mean people, you know, they have a lot of opinions about him and like anything else, my opinions can only be based on my experience. But he was super fun to hang out with. I mean he was like a big kid, you know?

   "So yeah, the time that I got to spend with him was — it was like Disneyland all day long. He'd set up water balloon fights and pie fights in basketball courts.

   "Just really fun stuff where he'd like invite all his friends over and there'd be two teams and everyone would dress in garbage bags and throw pies at each other. It was like super high-level fun and it was orchestrated fun and insanity."