Elton John has revealed that Michael Jackson was a "disturbing person to be around", according to his own experiences.
The 75-year-old knighted singer's autobiography, Me: Elton John, published in 2019, is full of shocking revelations about his life in the music business.
Among those revelations in his tell-all memoir are his recalled interactions and comments about the 50-year-old Thriller legend who passed away in 2009.
"I'd known Michael since he was 13 or 14. He was just the most adorable kid you could imagine," John wrote. "But at some point in the intervening years, he started sequestering himself away from the world and away from reality, the way Elvis Presley did."
The 'I'm Still Standing' singer also speculated that the 'Billie Jean' hitmaker's reliance and relationship with prescription drugs - which eventually killed him - was the reason for Jackson's change in character.
"God knows what was going on in his head, and God knows what prescription drugs he was being pumped full of, but every time I saw him in his later years I came away thinking that the poor guy had totally lost his marbles," he wrote.
"I don’t mean that in the lighthearted way. He was genuinely mentally ill, a disturbing person to be around," John explained.
Also, the 'Cold Heart' musician recalled a lunch that the pair shared in the '90s - at which Jackson’s make-up seemed to have been applied by a "maniac" as his nose was "covered with a sticking plaster".
"The poor guy looked awful, really frail and ill," John continued, before revealing that things turned more strange when Jackson left the table "without a word" and was found in his housekeeper's cottage "quietly playing games" with her 11-year-old son.
While John didn't comment on the 'Smooth Criminal' icon's abuse allegations, he did briefly mention that Jackson appeared to prefer the company of children to adults.
"For whatever reason, he couldn't seem to cope with the adult company at all," he wrote.
The award-winning singer's words echo sentiments shared after the release of the 2019 docuseries Leaving Neverland - which reexamined the sex abuse allegations made against the late icon.
'The Man In The Mirror' singer isn’t the only star illuminated in this memoir as John spoke about his special friendship with the late Princess Diana.
The memoir also mentions a dinner party the Rocketman attended to which Sylvester Stallone and Richard Gere almost fought as they competed for the late princess' affections.
John also talks about his rivalry with Tina Turner, his relationship with the late Queen Elizabeth II, and the time he slammed Bob Dylan's fashion sense.
Me: Elton John can be purchased online.