Yusuf / Cat Stevens is "petrified" of Glastonbury Legends slot

15 March 2023, 16:51 | Updated: 20 March 2023, 09:57

The singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist will follow in the footsteps of Diana Ross, Barry Gibb, Dolly Parton, Lionel Ritchie and more in playing the legendary teatime slot.

Yusuf / Cat Stevens has talked about his booking for Glastonbury's Legends slot and revealed he's "petrified".

The British singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist has been confirmed for the coveted slot, which takes place on Sunday night around 4pm on the festival's Pyramid Stage.

Asked how he feels about the upcoming performance, he told NME: “I’m petrified, obviously! I haven’t done a big gig like that in a long time."

"There we are," he added, when told the official attendance of the slot sits at around 195,000. "It’s teatime on a Sunday, when everyone has spare time to see whoever is on. That’s why I’m a little bit scared. But something usually helps you when those challenges are there to be met. I think I’ll get that help, and Glastonbury will be a very important moment in my career."

The Matthew & Sonsinger also revealed that it took him a long time to agree to do the historic set, but he sees it as a "bucket list moment" for himself and fans who have always wanted to see him live, but never did.

He admitted: "It took me time to say yes to the offer, but it’s a bucket list moment. A lot of people would like to see me live, and this is one big go when they can do that. For me, I could have done it years ago, but I took that long sabbatical in my life.”

READ MORE: Who has played the Glastonbury legends slot over the years?

The artist, who was born Steven Demetre Georgiou and changed his name to Yusuf Islam when he converted to Islam in 1977, also announced the details of his new album this week.

King of a Land is over a decade in the making and Yusuf / Cat Stevens describes it as a "mosaic" of both his identity and experiences.

He said: "Looking at the jagged journey of my music, beginning as I did in the 60’s, I would say this new record is a mosaic. A very clearly defined description of where I've been and who I am."

From it comes the lead single Take The World Apart, which comes accompanied with an official video. Listen to the track or watch the video here.

King of the Land is set for release on 25th June 2023:

King of a Land album Tracklisting:

1. Train on a Hill 
2. King of a Land 
3. Pagan Run
4. He is True 
5. All Nights, All Days 
6. Another Night in the Rain
7. Things.Son of Mary Highness
8. The Boy Who Knew How to Climb Walls
9. How Good it Feels
10. Take the World Apart

READ MORE: Arctic Monkeys & Guns N' Roses complete Glastonbury 2023 headliners as line-up is announced

Meanwhile, Glastonbury shared a new line-up poster this week, which sees Yusuf/Cat Stevens feature more prominently alongside Lana Del Rey, Little Nas X and Wizkid.

Festival organisers announced new names for the event, including Black Country, New Road and Gabriels, but appeared to have a rethink about its poster after coming under fire from Del Rey.

The Summertime Sadness hit the headlines earlier this month when she appeared to criticise how her headline slot on The Other Stage was announced.

Taking to Instagram to comment on the original poster, the Video Games singer wrote: "Well, I’m actually headlining the 2nd stage. But since there was no consideration for announcing that. We’ll see".

READ MORE: Liam Gallagher hints he'll play Glastonbury 2023 after Arctic Monkeys question