As Rolls-Royce celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Phantom, the marque reflects on its deep bond with music’s greatest legends. For a century, the Phantom has been more than a car. It has been a stage, a canvas and a cultural icon for artists shaping the soundtrack of modern life.
From the Golden Age of Hollywood to the dominance of hip-hop, the Phantom has carried stars including Marlene Dietrich, Elvis Presley, John Lennon, Liberace, Sir Elton John and Keith Moon. Today, it remains the preferred ride of Pharrell Williams, Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent and Lil Wayne. This enduring legacy cements its place as music’s most celebrated luxury symbol.
Chris Brownridge, Chief Executive of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, said:
“From the Golden Age of Hollywood to the rise of hip-hop, over the last 100 years, music artists have used Phantom to project their identity and challenge convention. Their motor cars often became icons in their own right, with a lasting place in the history of modern music. This enduring connection reminds us that Rolls-Royce and the extraordinary people who are part of the marque’s story are united by one ambition: to make their presence felt.”
A Century of Stardom on Four Wheels
From its early years, Rolls-Royce built a strong connection with popular culture. The Phantom, as the pinnacle of the marque, has accompanied cultural trailblazers for ten generations and 100 years. In 2025, the nameplate proudly celebrates this centenary.
Marlene Dietrich: Falling in Love Again
Few stars embodied glamour like Marlene Dietrich. After The Blue Angel, she arrived in Hollywood as both actor and style icon. A Rolls-Royce became part of her image, appearing in scenes and publicity stills. It marked the start of cinema’s long romance with the Phantom.
Elvis Presley: All Shook Up
By 1956, Elvis Presley had topped charts for weeks with his debut album. At the peak of his fame, he acquired a Phantom V tailored for touring. The car featured travel comforts and later received a Silver Blue finish. The colour kept it pristine under show lights and intense road schedules.
John Lennon: Love Me Do
In December 1964, John Lennon rewarded The Beatles’ success with a Phantom V, originally specified in a sober two-tone palette. Soon, he radically reimagined it–blacking out brightwork and then transforming the car into a psychedelic canvas inspired by Romany art and his star sign Libra.
For a new generation, the car captured the Summer of Love. For traditionalists, it shocked–one onlooker reportedly gasped at the sight. Decades later, the Phantom would command a record price at auction, sealing its place in rock history. Lennon also experimented with minimalism, commissioning another Phantom in stark white to mirror a new aesthetic.
Liberace: I’ll Be Seeing You
Showman Liberace treated the Phantom like a stage prop – and sometimes the stage itself. At the height of his Las Vegas fame, he drove a Phantom V covered in mirrored tiles under spotlights, a stunt later recreated by Michael Douglas on film. No other car matched the theatrics of his performances.
Sir Elton John: A Ride for the Rocketman
Liberace’s showmanship influenced Sir Elton John, who arrived at a venue in a Phantom borrowed for the occasion – then bought the car and made it his own. He updated the look with black paint, a black leather interior and upgraded audio, even reinforcing the rear window to withstand concert-level volume.
He later commissioned a distinctive Phantom V and famously collaborated on The Pink Phantom – another pop-culture moment linking the nameplate to music history.
Keith Moon: Won’t Get Fooled Again?
Legend says Keith Moon, celebrating his 21st, drove a Rolls-Royce into a hotel pool in Michigan – one of rock’s most enduring stories. Accounts differ; Moon later claimed it was a Lincoln Continental and not his car at all. Myths aside, the tale entwined Phantom with rock-and-roll folklore forever.
Rolls-Royce brought legend to life by immersing a Phantom Extended body shell, a retired prototype that was supposed to be recycled, in a swimming pool to commemorate Phantom’s centennial and the vehicle’s place in rock ‘n’ roll mythology. Tinside Lido, a renowned Art Deco monument adjacent to the English Channel in Plymouth, England, was selected as the site. The Lido, which is associated with John Lennon, one of Phantom’s most well-known customers, was the setting for a picture of The Beatles that was taken on September 12, 1967, while they were there to film The Magical Mystery Tour. The nameplate’s status as a musical icon was further cemented that year when Lennon debuted his yellow, hand-painted Phantom V.
Hip-Hop Star: “Stars in the Roof”
With production moving to Goodwood in 2003, the brand entered a new era. Within a decade, Rolls-Royce became the most name-checked luxury marque in song lyrics, propelled by hip-hop’s embrace of craft and success. In 2004, Pharrell Williams and Calvin ‘Snoop Dogg’ Broadus featured a Phantom in the video for Drop It Like It’s Hot, which topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks. Soon, a new lyrical shorthand took over–’stars in the roof’–a nod to the Phantom’s Starlight Headliner and a poetic way to signal Rolls-Royce ownership.
Encore: Phantom’s Lasting Legacy
For 100 years, the Rolls-Royce Phantom has mirrored the sound and spirit of each era – glamour, rebellion, reinvention and aspiration. As the centenary unfolds in 2025, Phantom continues to symbolise success, individuality and the power of human imagination – the definitive luxury car for those who make culture, not just consume it.
