Mick Jagger: I have the moves… like James Brown!

Sir Mick Jagger used to do "very bad imitations" of James Brown.

The Rolling Stones rocker co-produced the new movie Get on Up, which is a biopic of the funk musician. It was an obvious choice for Mick, who was always been in awe of the late American star.

"I tried some of his moves,” the star told British newspaper The Sun of his early career. “I did very bad imitations but they were fun.

"You’re in this phase of your career when you’re 19 or 20 when you’re basically doing cover versions and copying other people. Everybody did it and, if you got any good, you evolved your own style."

Mick has no problem admitting he imitated his idol, and he's also happy to confess he couldn't pull it off. It helped him find his own stage presence, with Mick now known for his strutting dances.

Mick also wants to show the huge impact James had on music. The 71-year-old star believes James sometimes gets overlooked, but if people really listened to a lot of modern tunes, they'd hear his impact.

"It ripples still. In the early days of hip-hop when nobody cared about sampling, every record had a James Brown scream on it," he enthused.

"Afrika Bambaataa [pioneering American DJ] lionised him for a new generation. Everyone in that world knows Brown is considered one of the early groove masters.

“The Funky Drummer riff [from a 1970 song] was taken by lots of hip-hop artists, both young and old.

“Hip-hop artists are getting old! Not quite as old as me, though!”

This isn't Mick's only big screen work - he's also involved in a movie about Elvis Presley. The star joked he's been "pigeonholed" thanks to Get on Up, but he's happy to get involved because he loves Elvis so much.