Rolling Stones Talk 'Foreign Tongues' With Zane Lowe

07-08-2026

The Rolling Stones were guests on The Zane Lowe Show on Apple Music to discuss their brand new studio album "'Foreign Tongues" and the program shared some highlights from the exchange.

In the candid and wide-ranging conversation, the legendary band pulls back the curtain on their creative process, shares stories behind collaborating with Paul McCartney and Andrew Watt, reflects on more than six decades of making music together, and offers a glimpse at what's to come.

Apple Music shared the following excerpts: The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about making 'Foreign Tongues'. Zane Lowe: What was so fun about making this album?

Ronnie Wood: I suppose the element of interaction and spontaneity. Spontaneity is the operative word here because we get the basic idea of a song. So Mick had an idea or something and said, come in the other room, let's routine it, right? And so I get the basic structure. And then everyone else had their own idea of the basic structure. As long as it came back to that, it's fine. You could do anything you wanted then.

Keith Richards: The only thing you're fighting is the room and the song, you're okay as long as you're not fighting each other. It was it was fun to make and it took us all of me to cut it and everybody was right on. Steve Jordan and Darryl Jones, you know, working in the new rhythm section, you know, I'm sure Charlie Watts is beaming down on us, so I feel good about that.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about working with the new generation of The Stones

Zane Lowe: I've wondered how it must feel for those guys, and you'd have a much better take on that than anybody else being in the room. These are family members of yours who've toured with you, traveled the world with you and helped you keep this music alive in front of audiences. But for them to be now on the record after all that time and contributing to the process must have been really special for you to see.

Keith Richards: It felt good to me to get this generation of The Stones on record, you know, it was kind of special. And as I say, they were playing so good. I could have gone on for another month, you know what I mean. It was Charlie Watts that did suggest to me that if ever I was gonna work with another drummer, it should be Steve Jordan and Steve is a great admirer of Charlie's way of playing. He sort of grew up listening to Charlie too. So despite the differences there's an automatic sort of appreciation of each other and what they could do. So I felt working with Steve that I was working with with family.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about getting the group back together to collaborate

Zane Lowe: Is it Mick that starts the process of making an album? Is he the one that's like, "Let's get The Stones back together, I've got something I wanna say, we should make a record"? And what's that process like? How challenging it is getting everybody on the same page to get into Metropolis or whatever?

Ronnie Wood: Well it's challenging to get everyone in the same country. Never mind in a studio. But, once it is operational and functioning we just kick off each other. Mick being the main drive if you can fire up his engines, you know, he just interacts so closely with the drums and the guitar and the bass, everything, the pianos and keyboards.

Keith Richards tells Apple Music about working with Andrew Watt

I'm very glad that we met Andrew when we did because he knows so much about The Stones that I've forgotten. And his enthusiasm for it, you can't beat it, it's great fun to work with. Really the only reason we have 'Foreign Tongues' out is because we did so much work on 'Hackney Diamonds" that Andrew and I both looked at it and somehow this is really a double album except, we'll just give it a year or two of a break. Before I think it was eighteen years between studio records, which was kind of stretching it a bit. But he's probably got ideas for a third album already..."

Ronnie Wood talks with Apple Music about joining The Rolling Stones

Zane Lowe: You brought such a unique new element to The Stones when you joined the band because everything you just beautifully laid out, your style, your way of playing, created a new feel for the band. How long did it take you to feel like what you were bringing to The Stones had really landed? 'Cause I know you did some recordings before you actually joined the band in whenever it was, seventy six I think officially, seventy five.

Ronnie Wood: Yeah, when I made my first album in seventy-three. Mick and Keith were there throughout and Mick Taylor. And Mick [Taylor] and I go right back to our first band when he was in The Gods and I was in a band called the The Birds. And he used to be too nervous to even go on. I used to have to go and play his parts for him. And when I knew he was joining The Stones I thought, oh well, you know, that guy he plays so melodically and so wonderfully I'm really pleased he's got that gig and I still miss Mick Taylor at at the moment. But I grew up knowing what The Stones were playing by being a fan of being a schoolboy. And I knew what Brian [Jones] was contributing to towards Keith and the way they played and then I could keep that going when I joined and bearing in mind what Mick Taylor had put in as well. So I was a fan of every one of them and I can pay tribute and take it my own way too.

Zane Lowe: I've heard that from quite a few players who join bands that they're a fan of and in particular a fan of the player that they're taking the place of. That you've got to find a way to lovingly develop your era but you've also gotta kind of be their fan when you join the band. You've gotta pay tribute for a while.

Ronnie Wood: It's not hard to do, it's a natural flow. Because if you're a fan you're learning as best you can the favorite riffs that say Mick Taylor play. Or try and get on that edge on just a certain phrase and I could do anything around it. As long as I came back to that phrase, the identity of that song, whatever it may be.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about new tracks from 'Foreign Tongues'

Zane Lowe: It's self-effacing in the sense that, I feel like you're poking fun at yourself a bit, but you're definitely kicking capitalism down the road a little bit. There's a nice suite of three songs in a row that I feel do that. You know, "Mr. Charm," "Divine Intervention," "Ringing Hollow" I want to talk about specifically because that's a wild song. But this idea of being at this point in your life and taking a look outside and The Stones have always reflected the world. You've always been a wide open band when it comes to Socio-political systems.

Mick Jagger: The thing about addressing social issues is that well first of all it's hard to do because the social issue you addressed, in three months might have disappeared completely from everyone's imagination and no one cares about it anymore. So you're making songs about irrelevant things. And people don't really preach that, but you could throw these things in. So I just throw them in even in "Rough and Twisted" you think, well it's about a woman. Well kind of is it? And then you just throw these social comment lines in there. But of course "Ringing Hollow" which you mentioned and in "Divine Intervention" obviously that's a kind of like dystopian song.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about their new song "Ringing Hollow"

Zane Lowe: It's a dystopian song and I think you really close it out that little mini chapter of the album with "Ringing Hollow." I mean you begin and it's almost like you're talking about past loves. "Is this about Marianne? Is this about Jerry? Who's this about? What's this about? Oh no it's about America."

Mick Jagger: It's about America. It's a love song to America, it's a bit of you're child cheating the audience by making them think it's about a woman and then you realize by line four, or maybe later, that it's not about women. So it is kind of because you're using Statue of Liberty or liberty as a concept, you're using that as a metaphor in the song as well. So is kind of liberty as a woman represented as a woman in America.

Zane Lowe: It must be so rewarding to get to a point in your life and I'm not talking about age or maturity, I'm talking about success and achievement and still feel like there's a "ringing hollow" waiting for you to find. You're making a pretty important statement about a country that promises a lot and has given you a lot.

Mick Jagger: It's given me a lot and it's admiration, but it's also like seeing the faults and the problems that we're going through in this country. And so that I was addressing that and I had several songs that were addressing that theme and I chose this one because it wasn't quite as on the nose as the others and it had more subtlety, I thought, and so I discarded the other ones.

Zane Lowe: Are there moments when you finish these songs you play them to the boys and they're like, yeah, Mick, that's it.

Mick Jagger: Yeah, played this to Keith and Keith liked this one straight away. He could see this, and also it was a different style of music. Going from the rock stuff and the four on the floor, groove tunes, going to a more country, using country styles to express this song about America is probably the best way to go 'cause it could have been a rock song.

Keith Richards: Oh "Ringing Hollow" is in a way a very tender sort of love song to America. And what the f*** went wrong. But I remember being in the fifties and I remember the jukebox and the cigarettes. We used to admire America so much and the idea of having radio stations all across the board instead of just the BBC was, I'll die and go to heaven just to have that. And there was so much we admired about America. And then of course close up there's a few cracks in the bell and they might as well write about that too. He did a great job on that.

Keith Richards talks with Apple Music about writing "Start Me Up"

Keith Richards: I remember "Start Me Up" was ten years from the writing of it to when it came out. I know it's like wine, like good wine. Some of it's better aged, you know? I remember the first hundred takes with reggae rhythm. So it went through a lot of styles before we said, hey, why don't we just play rock and roll. And that's the one that made it.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about collaborating with Paul McCartney

Zane Lowe: Paul McCartney, two-time offender now on Rolling Stones records. You know, this is a beautiful time to be a music fan and to know that the doors open in multiple directions for everybody to come together and work together. What did that mean to you personally from 'Hackney Diamonds' to now? To know that you've got the shorthand with Paul on Stones records obviously means a lot to him, he said as much to me.

Keith Richards: You know I've realized that Paul really misses being in a band. And his joy of just being in that context is great. So if there's any more songs to do, I'll let you know, Paul. I've known Paul for well basically since The Beatles started, since we started, but I mean only on the periphery and John and Paul did a couple of backup vocals for us way back when on "We Love You" and "Dandelion," I think way back in like sixty-seven or something like that. But otherwise, it's also great to have somebody from your own era, from way back when. He's a lovely player and I'd like to do more with him.

Zane Lowe: When you're in the studio and he's playing, I mean it's just like you've been so used to playing with your friends and everyone's got such a unique style. How does it feel when he fires up and it's his style? It's pure McCartney. It could only be McCartney playing that way.

Mick Jagger: Yeah, I don't know. On "Covered in You" he sounds like a funky, base player. I wouldn't recognize his style on that, honestly. And I didn't know he could play punk style, like real simple stuff like we wanted him to play. He just understood this style you know, and so he's obviously got a lot of capacity to change gears.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about AI and the "In The Stars" music video

Zane Lowe: I want to talk about the video for "In The Stars." It doesn't surprise me that The Rolling Stones would find themselves at the forefront of this new unknown entity, this idea of AI technology, even this far into what you've been doing. Here's a Stones song with the the greatest deep fake in music video history. What did you think of it when you saw it? 'Cause it's really what you think.

Keith Richards: I thought I was pretty good looking considering it's a new video. And then of course I realized there's AI. I really don't know enough about it to talk about it. I mean as with anything else like social media, it has its uses, but boy, it can have its downs, and I'm sure we'll find out more about that as it goes on. But you know, it's an adventure in the making, and we'll see what happens with it.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about a potential 'Foreign Tongues' tour

Zane Lowe: Just speaking personally, not for the band, but what's your appetite to go and play these songs in concert or tour and whatnot?

Ronnie Wood: Oh yeah, don't have to twist my arm, mate. I'll be out there as soon as I get my call up papers. You know?

Zane Lowe: Would you go on the road If you can?

Mick Jagger: Yeah, oh I'd love to.

Keith Richards: Next year's wide open, so I mean it is, it's up for grabs really.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about being one the longest lasting bands

Zane Lowe: For you, what's been the secret of keeping this band together longer than any other contemporary rock and roll band - it's the longest running relationship in roll and rock history.

Ronnie Wood: Well we don't over soak our hanging out. You know, we lead our own lives and when we do get back together, it's like no time had gone by. So we're back in the playground, as you're like naughty school boys, we're back in the studio. That's what we do. We love to interact, as you know, you can tell from the music, off of each other. Mick is still very driving, to this day.

Zane Lowe: And at the core of that is this friendship with you and Mick, and zeroing in on the music side of it, if you think about marriages don't last half as long as that. So when you think about you and Mick and what has really kept you together through all the good times and the tough times, does it boil down to the music?

Keith Richards: Oh it is a marriage of a kind. Who's wifey and who's husband is another thing. But maybe that's what keeps it going. But when you meet the guy that has the same taste in music and the same feel for it as you do it's more than double the pleasure. You can't put your finger on it but at the same time it is a mystery and I think maybe long may it be a mystery. I mean I've been trying to think about it and figure it out and what is I found pointless.

Mick Jagger: I think if The Rolling Stones have had a lot of failure it wouldn't have stayed together. We've been very lucky and been successful a lot you know, even though not everything we've put out recorded wise has been brilliant.

The Rolling Stones talk with Apple Music about what comes next

Zane Lowe: Do you go into the recording of 'Foreign Tongues' and do you think this may be our last recording?

Mick Jagger: You could think that. I think you always think that this could be the last record. I'm not saying it is, but I mean I thought 'Hackney Diamonds' was probably our last record and then we weren't scheduled to make this record. We were gonna go on the road and then we didn't go on the road and then we said, okay, we'll make a record and there you go.

Zane Lowe: How do you feel about the future of The Stones having made a record like this, fresh from making this record?

Ronnie Wood: We still got that drive from 'Hackney Diamonds' and 'Foreign Tongues'. The albums are getting more and more energetic, punchy, and we're still raising the bar. that's the evolution of the band. It's got that new youth and the new kick in it. Maybe Charlie's overlooking us and giving us some more inspiration.

Zane Lowe: With this album being fresh in your mind, how do you feel about spending time making another Stones record?

Keith Richards: Oh, I have no problem with that. Anytime the whistle blows, I'm there, I'm up for it. Always got a few songs in the bag and I'm sure Mick does, he never stops and so I mean making that's what I do, so you're automatically thinking about what you're gonna do next and so it's sort of there in the making.

Watch the full episode below or anytime on demand with an Apple Music subscription here.