Rod Stewart’s celebratory night at the 2025 American Music Awards was made even more special thanks to a surprise appearance by five of his children.
Stewart, 80, was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Monday, May 26, ceremony, held at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas.
Before he could make it to the stage, however, five of his eight children — Kimberly, 45, Sean, 44, Ruby, 37, Renee, 32, and Liam, 30 — reunited at the podium to honor their dad.
“Tonight, we are here as the biggest and most loving fans of our father, Sir Rod Stewart,” Ruby said. “Or as we all know him, Papa Stew. Some guys may have all the luck and some remain forever young, but our father is so much more than that.”
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After a video montage highlighting his career achievements, Stewart appeared on stage and voiced his astonishment at his guests.
“I am absolutely flabbergasted,” he said. “I didn’t know they were here. My children.”
Rod shares Kimberly and Sean with his ex-wife Alana Stewart, Ruby with ex-girlfriend Kelly Emberg and Renee and Liam with his ex-wife Rachel Hunter.
The rocker is also the father to daughter Sarah, 61, who he shares with ex-girlfriend Susannah Boffey, and sons Alastair, 19, and Aiden, 14, with his wife, Penny Lancaster.
“I’ve got eight altogether. I didn’t have a television,” Rod joked.
Rod said he was “so thrown” by his kids’ surprise appearance, explaining he thought they had “recorded” their intro earlier.
“Ugly aren’t they, all of them?” Rod ribbed again.
In reflecting back on his legendary career, Rod said he always had “a burning ambition to sing.”
“That’s all I wanted to do,” Rod explained. “I didn’t want to be rich or famous. And here I am, a few years later, picking up this wonderful award. Thank you so much.”
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He added, “I want to thank all of the musicians that I’ve played with. All of influences, like Sam Cooke, David Ruffin, Muddy Waters. All those guys who influenced me.”
The singer then launched into a performance of his classic song “Forever Young” which closed out the awards show as his kids watched with admiration from just off the stage.
The singer’s second oldest child, Kimberly, showed off her growing baby bump on stage. In March, she announced she was expecting her second child, but didn’t reveal the father’s identity. “Baby boy coming soon,” she shared via Instagram.
Kimberly shares her daughter Delilah, 13, with actor Benicio Del Toro.
