Phil Collen of Def Leppard brought vibrant energy to the afternoon, turning a routine interview into an engaging and dynamic conversation. Charismatic, sharp-witted, and fiercely passionate about his craft, he radiated confidence while keeping the exchange approachable. From the moment he appeared on screen, his humour and warmth set the tone for a session that was relaxed yet insightful. The conversation flowed with ease, moving through Def Leppard’s enduring legacy, the secret behind their timeless hits, and the stories behind their most iconic tracks and shows.

Collen’s passion for music was evident as he shared anecdotes about past and upcoming shows, giving fans a glimpse into the inner workings of one of rock’s most legendary bands. The mix of candid reflections and playful banter made the interview feel like an intimate chat among friends, leaving a lasting impression and offering fresh perspectives on Def Leppard’s journey and continuing influence. With their August 2026 show on the horizon, anticipation only grows stronger, as fans count down to experience that energy live.

Coming back to the UAE

DubaiNight: Many rock legends have already played in Dubai. How does Def Leppard intend to leave a distinct mark on this city’s growing live music story?

Phil Collen: So I was just talking about this earlier. We’ve actually played there before. It was in the early 90s and we did WWE. We also played an F1 event about two or three years ago. We’ve seen real comparisons with Vegas. When we first went to Vegas in 1983, it was literally just the Strip surrounded by desert. Now Vegas has exploded into America’s entertainment capital with Cirque du Soleil, UFC, boxing, Formula One, everything. I think there are big similarities. I’m really excited because of that parallel. We’re actually doing another Vegas show next February. Watching that growth has been amazing. When we play Vegas now, it’s a new production with different songs, constantly updated. Since Covid we’ve mostly done the same show, so this is going to be explosive and different. By the time we get to Dubai, it’s going to be crazy.

DubaiNight: The band is working remotely on the new album. Could Dubai be one of the first places where fans hear material from it live?

Phil Collen: Yes, absolutely. Certainly, in typical Def Leppard fashion, we’ll say the album will be ready this year… maybe next year. We have around 15 songs that are pretty much done, but we’re still adding the finishing touches. So yes, there will definitely be some new music by the time we get there.

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On Legacy & iconic moments

DubaiNight: You’ve been rocking stages for decades—what’s the secret sauce that keeps Def Leppard’s energy timeless instead of just nostalgic?

Phil Collen: So I don’t want to get old. I know we all get old, that’s the inescapable reality, absolutely. But you can head it off at the pass. You can actually do magic tricks. I just saw this thing on Mick Jagger’s 81st birthday last year. He had a video of himself in a dance studio. I looked up and thought, that looks like a 28-year-old man, just the way he was moving. And it was Mick Jagger, at 81. There are new methods for training. There are dietary things. There’s all this stuff you have to do if you want to hold off aging. So we do that. We also really sing when we play. A lot of bands have a recording session or samples, but we’re really singing. It’s something we rehearse and pride ourselves on. We don’t have speakers on stage, so you can actually sing instead of shouting. The singing keeps getting better every time. And then people go, “Oh, that can’t be real, that sounds too good.” It’s a backhanded compliment. So going back to that point, what’s different is we keep improving. I think that’s a big deal. Most people hit a certain level, say “this is okay,” and they stay there. We’re not pleased with that.

DubaiNight: Many artists see Dubai as a luxury stop; others as an emerging frontier. For Def Leppard, what does a Dubai show mean?

Phil Collen: Well, it’s an excuse to show off for us. We want to bring our show and really hit it out of the park. We try to do that everywhere, but especially in a new territory. Even though we’ve played there before, we’ve never brought our full show. When you’re talking about entertainment capitals, it’s important to deliver and make sure people remember it. It’s about marking the territory. The competition is massive. You see a Taylor Swift or Beyoncé show and realise the bar keeps getting higher. It’s scary what’s happening in the mainstream. But on that point, we really sing. It’s live hard rock with all the songs, but the vocals are real. I have to practise every day, even off tour, just to keep my voice up. It’s the first thing to go. It never stops. People think you hit success and can relax, but that’s not the case. It actually gets harder, because you have to keep improving.

DubaiNight: If you could relive one Def Leppard concert from your career—exact same crowd, same night, same setlist—what show would you pick and why?

Phil Collen: We’ve had a few, actually. We did the Download Festival in 2009, and the weather was perfect. I love that festival, it’s crazy and wonderful. It was honestly tear-jerking. There have been others too. We played Wembley Stadium, SoFi Stadium, and Mexico City, which is always incredible for us. The audience there is amazing. We last played two years ago, and again it brought tears to my eyes because of how they reacted. Montreal has been the same. We played the same sports arena a few times, and once the audience went so crazy we couldn’t play for two minutes. So yes, there have been a few shows that were absolutely amazing. It’s a special connection. As artists, we always give the same energy everywhere. But some places are more emotional, and they react differently. That kind of imprint stays with you and leaves a mark. It’s incredible.

Sometimes someone comes off stage saying, oh my god, that was amazing. Another might say, oh my god, that was the worst show ever. It all depends. When it’s unanimous, that’s the best. We always say we’re at least 90 percent there. Even if someone has a terrible night, loses their voice, or forgets words, the band as a whole holds it up. You’re only human after all, and these things happen. I forget words every single night. I sing the wrong ones. It’s almost a condition. It’s actually very common. Even forgetting your own lyrics is normal, and the audience gets it. Just the other week I was singing Animal. The line is “I got to feel it in my blood,” but I sang “I got to feel it in my heart.” I thought, wait, I’ve been singing the right words all along… nope. Error. Where did that even come from? So yes, it happens.

Def Leppard Interview DubaiNight

DubaiNight: Hysteria turns forty in 2027. Does performing in Dubai now feel like setting the stage for that milestone with a new generation of fans?

Phil Collen: Absolutely, because it’s getting close to when we’ll be doing a Hysteria tour. We always play about seven songs from that album anyway. It’s our biggest record, so yes, absolutely, for sure.

DubaiNight: What’s the strangest item that’s ever been thrown on stage at a Def Leppard show?

Phil Collen: A live cat. Excuse me? Yes, a live cat came on stage. We grabbed it, took it backstage, and eventually found the owner. That was somewhere in the States, and it was definitely strange. Before Def Leppard, I was in a band called Girl. We opened for Ozzy Osbourne, and someone threw a dead, headless bird on stage. It wasn’t at us, it was at Ozzy, but we were standing there like, okay, this is weird. Over the years we’ve had ninja stars, bottles, scissors. Once, in 1983, I got hit in the eye with a woman’s shoe. I had to have cataract surgery because of it. At first I thought it was just a black eye. Five years later I couldn’t see out of it. The doctor told me I was too young for a cataract, but that’s exactly what it was. So yeah, that happened.

DubaiNight: Do you think that woman ever found out that she caused you that condition?

Phil Collen: Well, at least I know she had to limp home with one shoe. I think she actually took pride in that. If she was one-legged, then who knows. We came off stage once in Texas and didn’t realise there were ninja stars stuck in the back of the speaker cabinets. We were like, what? You don’t even know they’re flying onto the stage until you see them. It was dangerous, but it is what it is. That’s the risk.

DubaiNight: When you first started out, did you ever imagine songs like “Pour Some Sugar on Me” would still be festival anthems 40 years later?

Phil Collen: No, but our producer Mutt Lange did. When we finished the album, Joe was off in the corner playing acoustic guitar. Mutt stopped and asked, what’s that? Joe didn’t really know, but Mutt told us to stop everything, and that little moment turned into a song. He said it could be the most important track on the record, even a career changer. We were surprised, but he was right. When someone later asked why we had spent so much time on it, Mutt replied, so you’ll be talking about it in 40 years. And here we are.

DubaiNight: It's an iconic song, and it could be, you know, like one of those songs to be studied, even for people aspiring to produce songs that would last, right?

Phil Collen: There was an interesting thing with it. My producer was listening to Run DMC, Public Enemy, and hip-hop, which was often just called rap at the time. He suggested we shape the vocal line in the verse more like a rap song, with a meter closer to hip-hop than rock. That idea of infusing the two styles was really new then. LL Cool J had just come out, and it felt like something emerging. So when you combine rock with rap or hip-hop, that’s what you get. I think that crossover is why the song became so popular.

Las Vegas Residency

DubaiNight: Your Las Vegas residency arrives just six months before Dubai. How will the Dubai performance differ from a city you’ve practically made a second home?

Phil Collen: Vegas is almost a testing ground for us, because we’ll be there a month, not playing every night but trying things out. We test everything — the screens, the content, even getting in shape — and hopefully it all comes together. By the time we get to Dubai, it will be completely dialled in. We’ll have already done the experimenting, and by then it will be a full presentation, ready to go. Fans in Vegas might even catch different versions depending on the night, with certain songs swapped in and out. And with a European tour before that, we’ll be fully prepared. By the time we arrive in Dubai, it’s going to be amazing.

Inside Phil Collen's Mind

DubaiNight: If you were to pick an up-and-coming band or artist currently happening, who would you say is someone that caught your attention in the modern scene today?

Phil collen: With rock today, you’ve got someone like Yungblud, who feels like a hybrid. I’ve always loved hybrids, crossing one style with another, and that’s essentially what we are. Linkin Park did the same with nu metal, blending hip-hop and heavy metal. You also see it with artists like Taylor Swift, and before her, Shania Twain, which was my thing. I see glimpses of that same crossover approach with Yungblud. It’s rock, but not entirely. It leans into pop as well. And really, everyone still wants to be a rock star. That’s the term, “rock star.” You think of Mick Jagger, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix. That’s the look, the image. It’s what it says on the can when you buy it, and everyone wants to be that.

DubaiNight: Yungblud has it. He’s been making huge waves in the scene, performing alongside legends and reaching milestones that take most artists a decade. He’s already become a crowd favourite, and I’ve been following closely what he’s doing. In many ways, he feels like the Taylor Swift of the rock world.

Phil Collen: It’s not quite rock, not all the way. We’re a rock band, and Metallica is a metal band, but ultimately they’re also a rock band. It’s different. Yungblud has the voice though — absolutely. His voice has a rock timbre. Michael Jackson had that too. People often think of the falsetto, but at his core he was a rock singer as well. So yes, I see exactly where you’re going with this.

DubaiNight: All right, Phil, say something to Dubai from your heart, what would you say, to address the city?

Phil Collen: Dubai has the hottest water I’ve ever put my foot in, the sea around the United Arab Emirates. I forget exactly where, but it was hotter than anywhere else I’ve been. Before that, maybe somewhere in the Caribbean. I’ve done the freezing cold water too, Sweden, through the ice, but this takes number one for hottest. I really want to go swimming in the sea there again. It’s a weird thing to bring up, but whenever anyone asks where the hottest water I’ve been in was, that’s it. Before that, I’d have said Goa or Kerala in India, which felt like a bath. But Dubai still tops the list. Why not?

UK’s rockstars Def Leppard are coming to Coca-Cola Arena in 2026 so make sur to grab those tickets and stay updated @defleppard

Interview with Def Leppard's Phil Collen

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