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Patti Smith Meets Pope Leo XIV: ‘A Moment That Shall Forever Produce a Smile’
Patti Smith met Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican for a 40-minute conversation, following a recent performance in Rome. The meeting brought together two Chicago natives and was presented as a warm exchange centred on music, shared memories and hope amid wider global divisions.
The audience was arranged by Rev. Antonio Spadaro, a friend of Smith’s and an official in the Vatican’s culture ministry. Smith greeted the Pope with a reference to her 1979 song “Wave”, which imagines speaking with Pope John Paul I; Leo recognised it immediately. Although Smith is not Catholic, she said she admired the Pope’s “gentle, open, and steadfast” humanity; she had previously met Pope Francis in 2013 and performed for him the following year.
In short
- Patti Smith held a 40-minute meeting with Pope Leo XIV.
- Their exchange included a reference to Smith’s song “Wave”.
- Smith said she was drawn to the Pope’s humanity.
Explained simply
Patti Smith is an American singer, songwriter and poet whose career began in New York’s music and arts scene in the 1970s. Her work often draws on literature, personal experience and spiritual themes, and she is not Catholic.
Pope Leo XIV leads the Catholic Church and is also from Chicago, as is Smith. Their meeting was arranged by Rev. Antonio Spadaro, a Vatican official involved in cultural affairs and a friend of Smith’s. The encounter brought together figures from music and religion, against a backdrop of wider global divisions.