After witnessing Young Thug in the studio, Elton John says he was “just blown away.” During a recent interview with Billboard ​​​​​, he opened up about the time he saw Thug’s freestyle abilities in person.

“I mean, I’ve seen Marshall [Mathers] do it in Detroit, but I’ve never seen someone like Thug come in and do that,” the legend said. “In the end, I had to leave because I think he felt a bit intimidated that I was there, and I just wanted him to relax. But it’s just an amazing moment in my musical life…I have no understanding of how rap records are put together, and it’s fascinating to watch.”

Thug sampled John’s “Rocket Man” on his single “High” in 2018, and the two met shortly after its release. Amid his conversation with Billboard, John remembered giving the emcee some musical advice amid their encounter.

“He wanted to meet me…and we shot the breeze for 40 minutes,” he recalled. “He said, ‘What do you think? What advice would you give me?’ I said, ‘Did you sing in the choir?’ And he said, ‘Yeah, of course I sang in the choir. Gospel choir.’ I said, ‘Sing more. Don’t just rap, sing more, because the mixture of rap and musicianship and melody is what really makes rap take off.’” Years later, the music legend claims Young Thug is “doing that now.”

John’s recent comments aren’t the first time he’s praised the “Lifestyle” emcee. When “High” dropped, he took to his radio show and played the song for his fans.

“Young Thug, who I love and have met, he dropped a track. It’s a remix of ‘Rocket Man,’” he said at the time. “And I don’t usually play my own stuff on this show, but this is so cool and so good. Sometimes you hear something that you never knew was going to happen or never thought was going to happen in a million years.”

Thug is set to appear on John’s single “Always Love You” alongside Nicki Minaj. The rock star also collaborated with Thug on “More,” a song on the rapper’s forthcoming project, Punk.