EXCLUSIVE: Paul McCartney's Ghostly Inspiration! Beatles Legend 'Mentally Consults' With Late Bandmate and 'Best Collaborator' John Lennon
Paul McCartney said he still 'consults' with John Lennon on his work.
June 17 2026, Published 7:30 p.m. ET
The Beatles legend John Lennon was tragically shot and killed by Mark David Chapman in 1980.
Decades later, death doesn't keep Paul McCartney from "mentally consulting" with his late bandmate about new music, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Paul McCartney's 'Best Collaborator'
Paul McCartney found it difficult to write music after John Lennon's death.
"We collaborated for so long, I think, okay, what would he think of this? What would he say now?" McCartney shared back in 2020.
And he may even answer back – at least in a way.
"We’d both agree that this new song I’m talking about is going nowhere," he quipped.
The Maybe I'm Amazed singer, 83, also admitted that he struggled with penning lyrics for some time after Lennon's assassination.
"Right up until that point I’d been working with John, the best collaborator in the world," McCartney recalled. "Suddenly, that was taken away. It was very difficult."
A 'Happy Sad' Moment for Paul McCartney
John Lennon would have turned 80 years old in October 2020.
One particularly sad marker for McCartney was October 9, 2020. Lennon, who died when he was only 40 years old, would have turned 80 years old that day.
"It was happy sad," McCartney shared of the special time. "It reminds me he was murdered – but it also reminds me of the fantastic times we had!"
Paul McCartney 'Deeply Affected' by State of the World
Paul McCartney is 'haunted' by 'how fractured' the world has become, a source claimed.
Earlier this year, an insider claimed Lennon's death still weighs heavily on McCartney despite the years that have passed.
"Paul still carries enormous sadness over losing John, but what really leaves him haunted by John now is seeing how fractured the world has become. Wars, political hatred, and violence make him feel the dream they once sang about is slipping further and further away."
Sadly, his outlook on life has seemingly changed over the years as well. While he once sang about the ends of wars and peace among religious groups, as political tensions continue, McCartney is no longer sure that's possible.
"Ukraine, Iran, and everything happening internationally have deeply affected him," the source noted. "Paul genuinely believed music could bring people together, but he now admits privately he fears peace on a global scale may never happen."
Paul McCartney 'Distances' Himself From The Beatles With New Music
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Paul McCartney has continued to make his own music that is different from The Beatles.
As Radar previously reported, McCartney has tried to distance himself from solely being affiliated with The Beatles as he continues his work as a musician and performer.
"I don't think, 'Wow, oh yeah, let's do this. This is a Beatles idea, or this is a Wings idea,'" he recently admitted. "I don't think like that. It's all current. It's me. This is what I do."
According to an insider, McCartney has "enormous pride" in what he achieved with The Beatles, but that's not all of who he is as an artist.
"He doesn't want every new piece of music to be viewed as some extension of that legacy and is a bit desperate to distance himself from the band when it comes to this project. He is still writing, recording and creating because he loves making music in the present," explained the insider.
Instead, his latest studio album, The Boys Of Dungeon Lane, is "incredibly personal and reflects his own experiences and memories."
