The singer said telling his six children they do not have to work is 'a form of abuse that I hope I'm never guilty of'
NEED TO KNOW
- Sting is explaining why he won’t be passing his fortune to his six children
- He said in a new interview with CBS News Sunday Morning that he thinks telling his kids they do not have to work is “a form of abuse that I hope I’m never guilty of”
- The singer first said his children would not inherit his fortune during a 2014 interview
Sting is still supporting his kids, but without giving them unlimited funds.
The singer, 74, laughed when CBS News Sunday Morning asked if he still plans on not leaving his fortune to his children. Then, he said always intended for them to find their own way in the world.
Sting, whose real name is Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, explained to journalist Mark Phillips that he felt that telling children they "don't have to work" is "a form of abuse that I hope I'm never guilty of."
"All of my kids have been blessed with this extraordinary work ethic, whether it's the DNA of it or whether I've said to them, 'Guys, you've got to work. I'm spending our money,' " Sting continued. "'I'm paying for your education. You've got shoes on your feet. Go to work.' "
"That's not cruel," the "Every Breath You Take" singer said. "I think that's there's there's a kindness there and a trust in them that they will make their own way. They're tough, my kids."
When Phillips asked if his kids ever grow frustrated with this philosophy and ask him for more money, he replied. "No, not to my face, they don't."
Sting previously mentioned that he didn't want to leave his entire fortune to his children in a 2014 Mail on Sunday interview.
"I certainly don’t want to leave them trust funds that are albatrosses round their necks," he said at the time. "They have to work. All my kids know that and they rarely ask me for anything, which I really respect and appreciate."
While Sting said in 2014 that he would help his children if they "were in trouble," he added, "They have the work ethic that makes them want to succeed on their own merit."
The former Police frontman was previously married to actress Frances Tomelty from 1976 to 1984, and the former couple shares two children: son Joe Sumner, 49, and daughter Fuschia Sumner, 44.
Sting married Trudie Styler in August 1992 after 10 years together. Sting and Styler share four children: Mickey Sumner, 42, Jake Sumner, 40, Eliot Sumner, 35, and Giacomo Sumner, 30.
Credit: Kevin Mazur/WireImage
"My kids are fiercely independent," Sting said in a 2020 interview with PEOPLE. "They're not sitting there waiting for a handout at all, and I wouldn't want to rob them of that adventure in life: to make your own living."
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.
"It's a wonderful and difficult thing to do," Sting told PEOPLE at the time. "So I haven't promised them anything. I'll obviously help them if they're in trouble, but they're not waiting for a handout. They're too independent."
Sting has been busy promoting the international tour for his stage musical, The Last Ship. The tour stops at New York City's Metropolitan Opera on June 9.
Read the full article here
