Bob Dylan has met Pope Leo XIV at his official residence at the Vatican.
The Pope presented the legendary singer-songwriter with a rosary at the meeting at the Apostolic Palace. Dylan, who was wearing a black hoodie, also gifted Leo a copy of his autobiography, Chronicles: Volume One.
The pair were pictured shaking hands on Instagram with Leo smiling warmly in his usual traditional white robes, while Dylan looked at him intently.
“Pope Leo XIV met with American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan in a private audience on Wednesday, November 4,” the caption simply reads.
According to Vatican News, their meeting was “brief, consisting of greetings and a few lighthearted exchanges.”
The visit happened ahead of the singer-songwriter’s scheduled performance later today (November 5) at the Palazzo dello Sport in Rome, one of several Italian stops on his ‘Rough And Rowdy Ways Tour’.
Leo has previously referenced Dylan in his own work, quoting his unreleased anti-nuclear song, ‘Go Away You Bomb’, in the preface to a book titled Disarmed And Disarming: Peace Is A Gift.
Patti Smith previously met with Pope Leo XIV during a 40-minute private audience at the Vatican over the summer.
The punk icon was welcomed with the Vatican later sharing photographs and footage of the meeting on social media.
Smith was accompanied by her longtime friend Reverend Antonio Spadaro, who serves as the Vatican’s Undersecretary for Culture and Education. He said that Smith was initially almost speechless in the Pope’s presence, but before long the two struck up a rapport.
“When that door opened, something happened,” Spadaro wrote on X. “A spark was lit – one that came with a few lighthearted moments, but also with a profound sense of emotion and of a shared mission in this challenging world.”
“Two Americans, two Chicagoans. Two remarkable figures whose voices speak hope to a divided world: the ‘priestess of rock’, as #PattiSmith is often called, and the Holy Father, #PopeLeoXIV.”
Meanwhile, Dylan is set to release a huge new box set called ‘The Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1976 Live Recordings’ tomorrow (November 6).
Set to be released by Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings, the new launch will come as a huge 39-CD box set, which fully captures the legendary singer-songwriter’s 1976 tour.
The UK trek of his current tour starts in Bournemouth on November 25, and includes shows in Birmingham, Sheffield and Blackpool. From there, Dylan will head to the capital for five headline performances at the Royal Festival Hall between December 3 and 8. These dates mark Dylan’s first visit to London since his trio of gigs at the Royal Albert Hall in 2024. Visit here for tickets.
The tour has already seen Dylan return to a number of rarely played songs. Earlier this year, he performed ‘I Shall Be Released’ for the first time in 18 years at Cuthbert Amphitheater in Eugene, Oregon, after also reviving ‘You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere’ near Seattle for the first time since 2012.
