Mick Jagger is making it clear that the Rolling Stones are still built for the road, not for staying put in one city. In a new interview with Argentine radio station La Nación, the 82-year-old frontman said he would rather keep moving from place to place than settle into a residency-style run. He explained that he is “very ambivalent” about residencies because they can make concerts more expensive for fans who have to travel to a single destination, and he added that he is “very comfortable moving around” because he likes to “go places.”
That comment matters because residencies have become a popular model for major artists, especially as live costs rise and large-scale touring gets more complicated. Jagger’s point was simple: a residency may be easier for the band, but it puts the burden on the audience. In his view, touring spreads the experience out to more fans instead of making everyone come to one city at a much higher personal cost.
He also made it clear that he would still love to take the Rolling Stones back on the road behind their upcoming album Foreign Tongues. Jagger said he “can’t wait to sing” the new material and believes there are plenty of songs on the record that would work well live. He added that the band does not expect to tour this year, but that he hopes to do it “as soon as possible,” and even said he would “love to come to Argentina” as part of that run.
The timing is notable because Foreign Tongues is set for release on July 10 and is being positioned as the Rolling Stones’ 25th studio album. The record includes guest appearances from Paul McCartney, Robert Smith, Chad Smith, and Steve Winwood, which has only increased interest in what a future Stones tour might look like.
If the band does tour in 2027, it would be their first trek since the Hackney Diamonds ’24 Tour, which supported their 2023 album Hackney Diamonds. That context makes Jagger’s remarks especially relevant: the Stones are not talking about retirement, but they do seem to be choosing carefully between the economics of residencies and the freedom of a traditional tour.
The broader Stones conversation this week has also included their creative process. Jagger recently said he tried using AI for ideas while naming Hackney Diamonds, but the results were “rubbish,” while also admitting that the technology can occasionally help him compare and sharpen his own ideas. That makes his preference for touring fit a larger pattern: the band is still experimenting, but only on its own terms.
For fans, the takeaway is encouraging. Jagger is not saying no to live shows. He is saying no to a model that forces fans to come to him. In other words, the Stones still sound like a touring band at heart, and Jagger still sounds like a man who likes the motion, the travel, and the unpredictability that come with it.
