Mick Jagger has said he deliberately keeps politics out of The Rolling Stones' live shows, viewing his role as entertaining fans rather than lecturing them. Speaking on the New York Times podcast The Interview, he explained that after six decades of touring he tailors each performance to its setting and audience, but the constant across all shows is giving people a two-hour escape from real-life worries such as mortgages and world events, likening the experience to watching a sporting event.

Jagger noted that festival crowds differ from dedicated fans on headline tours and need to be approached differently, but insisted his job is always to help the audience "go more apeshit" rather than push a message. He acknowledged that political and social commentary does creep into the band's songwriting, including on new album 'Foreign Tongues', where he says he often slips a political verse into otherwise personal songs as a "trick" to share his views. He also addressed speculation that the track 'Mr Charm' targets Elon Musk, saying listeners fixate on the name rather than the lyric's actual meaning.