Tonight, on the evening of what would have been John Lennon‘s 80th birthday, the Empire State Building will be lit up with sky-blue lighting and will feature a white rotating peace sign in its mast to commemorate the milestone.

Lennon’s son Sean will be on hand at sundown tonight to flip the switch to turn on the light. The historic building will remain lit up until 2 a.m. ET on Friday, October 9, John’s actual birthday.

Meanwhile, fans are being asked to record videos of themselves performing Lennon songs and post them on YouTube, Instagram or TikTok, using the tags @JohnLennon, #LENNON80 and #GIMMESOMETRUTH. Select clips will be chosen to be posted on JohnLennon.com on October 9 alongside performance videos from musicians including Willie Nelson, Beck, Wilco‘s Jeff Tweedy and Sean Lennon.

Visit JohnLennon.com to check out additional ways that the late Beatles legend’s 80th birthday is being commemorated around the world.

As previously reported, a new Lennon solo compilation titled Gimme Some Truth: The Ultimate Mixes will be released on Friday. It features 36 songs handpicked by John’s widow, Yoko Ono, and son Sean, the latter of whom produced the album. All of the tracks were remixed from scratch, and the final mixes were completed using vintage analog equipment and effects, and then mastered in analog at Abbey Road Studios in London.

Gimme Some Truth can be pre-ordered now in a variety of formats, including CD, LP, a double-CD, a four-LP package, streaming, digital and a deluxe box set.

By Matt Friedlander
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