I met David Beckham

So there I was, in London, in the Soho House above the BBC studio complex. I had previously attended an event where Mr. Beckham was the guest of honor. It was so massive that I got lost in the crowd and left after twenty minutes. But this had all the appearance of an intimate event. I already wrote how it all came to be that I suddenly found myself here. Lots of plush, small tables with cute lamps, customized gin tonics in those lovely whiskey glasses and… David Beckham with his son Cruz as an intensely fun extra. Of course, we talked about music. After all, the event was organized by audio brand Bowers & Wilkins. And what Bowers & Wilkins knows very well is that music is what makes our hearts beat faster, right? And David a little too, I suppose.

David and The Doobie Brothers
“Every Sunday afternoon, my dad would sit on the floor with his stack of LPs listening to The Doobie Brothers and Michael McDonald. Those were really special moments, and how special that forty years later I’m listening to exactly the same music. The Doobie Brothers encompassed a large part of my life.”

The Manchester music scene
“In 1992, I started playing for Manchester United, which at that time was really the club, and for me, it was spectacular. I had been a fan of Manchester for years, and my dad for many years before that, so it was the only club I wanted to play for. Moving there was amazing. So much was happening in that city in the nineties, the music scene was so cool. Of course, there was The Hacienda (a nightclub and music venue, MM) where I went very occasionally. Oasis, Primal Scream; all these bands broke through at the same time.”

“I have an incredibly broad taste in music and jump on every trend, from Etta James to Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone to Jay Z and Primal Scream. Just like my dad, I listen to Michael McDonald and all his classics, but just as easily I shifted my musical taste to the Manchester music scene. I saw Liam and Noel (Gallagher, MM) from time to time. They were very nice despite me being a United player. (The Gallaghers are serious fans of Manchester City, MM). When I was in London, I always went to record stores to buy new music. My son Cruz, who is also here by the way, is also completely obsessed with music and loves going to record stores to get inspired and discover new artists. He spends an absurd amount of money on it, but luckily he knows that himself.”

A bit about son Cruz
“About ten years ago, we were all in the car when Cruz was singing in the back seat. I looked at Victoria and said, ‘I think he can sing well.’ To which Victoria replied, ‘He CAN sing. Quiet now, I’m listening!’ Cruz is about to release his own record, he is incredibly passionate about music and really lights up when he’s behind a microphone.”

Old loves
“I have always loved R&B, Jay-Z, Usher, d'Angelo, but my taste in music goes in all directions. Sometimes it’s classical, I live in France, then I play the playlist of Midnight in Paris and when I’m in Italy, I like to listen to Andrea Bocelli.”

Music that stays with you
“My kids joke that wherever I go, I play the music from there. I dive right in. In Manchester? Stone Roses! In France? Midnight in Paris then. I’m a huge Marc Anthony fan, and I’m also lucky that he is one of my best friends. I listened to him a lot when I was on my way to a match, especially when I lived in Spain.”

Music for the right mindset
“You see a lot of athletes now with headphones on to pump themselves up. I had my walkman to relax. But on the Man United bus, we really weren’t allowed to listen to our own music from The Boss (coach Sir Alex Ferguson, MM). He decided what played, and if he didn’t like it, he turned it off. It’s not like we were allowed to listen to our own music individually from him.”

Islands in the Stream
“Fortunately, Victoria and I have the same taste in music. It would be terrible to be with someone for 25 years and not like the same music. Wherever we are, we play music. And we almost always agree. Except this morning when we were training, Victoria and I work out together every morning, and she put on Whitney Houston. ‘I’m lifting weights, that can’t be on Whitney,’ I said, and then I cranked it up with Oasis.”

“Islands in the Stream is a song that Victoria and I have played so often. On the day of the Netflix documentary shoot, we were in the tent in the garden. I was happily grilling in the kitchen, had a few beers, and when Islands in the Stream played, we did our ritual mom-and-dad dance. That’s what it’s all about. Dancing together, being with the family, putting the phones away and being in the moment. I hope our kids remember us like that later.”

Are you a headphone type?
“When I’m on a plane, I like to shut myself off with headphones. But we like to be together, at six o'clock in the evening everyone from our family who is home gathers around the kitchen table. Then phones are temporarily banned and we listen to music together. We do that nicely on the speakers of course. I find quality extremely important in everything I do. I’m lucky that the brands I work with are also the best of the best. That’s why the collaboration with Bowers & Wilkins is so fitting, because they make the very best and most beautiful audio equipment and for someone like me who lives so much with music, that is very important.”

Songs with a memory?
“Elton (John, MM) was supposed to sing The Way You Look Tonight at our wedding, but had a heart attack shortly before. In the end, he sang it at the baptism of one of the boys. By the way, we chose a ‘birth song’ for each child, at each birth that we thought fit the life journey of each child. A Spice Girls favorite song is definitely ‘Mama’. On Victoria’s fiftieth birthday Cruz sang it for her and that was very special.”

Musical encounters
“The most special encounter with one of my musical heroes was when I took Cruz to a playdate in Los Angeles. I didn’t actually know who he was meeting, but drove him to that house and walked in with him. Suddenly, there was Paul McCartney, one of my mom’s and my heroes, behind the piano.”

A playlist planner
“I’m a planner. I think about everything. About what I’m going to wear, how I’ll do my hair… When we have a dinner party, I immediately make a playlist. Sometimes months in advance.”