Brian Eno’s Together For Palestine event at Wembley Arena last night was by all accounts a moving and emotional evening.
It saw 150 cultural figures from all over the world – actors, sportspeople, activists, poets and of course musicians come together in a show of support for the people of Palestine amidst the ongoing horror show that is beamed onto our screens from Gaza.
Writing in the Guardian ahead of the event, Eno said, "If there is a reckoning, it might be, in part at least, because actors, artists, writers and musicians helped us to see Palestinians as human beings, as much deserving of respect and protection as their Israeli neighbours.
"As the Egyptian-Canadian writer Omar El Akkad says, one day everyone will have always been against this."
It was a benefit night too, for Choose Love, which will distribute all the funds raised to Palestinian-led organisations such as Taawon, Palestine Children’s Relief Fund and the Palestinian Medical Relief Service. Almost £1.5 million has been raised by the concert so far.
Among the highlights were Neneh Cherry, Greentea Peng and Dan Smith of Bastille who joined forces for a spine-tingling version of Cherry’s 1994 hit 7 Seconds.
Meanwhile, Annie Lennox contributed a pre-recorded new version of Why, with rewritten lyrics. It will be available on streaming platforms over the coming days with all proceeds going to the Together For Palestine fund.
The London Arab Orchestra were joined by Damon Albarn and played a medley of Palestinian traditional songs to some of the loudest cheers of the night. The lights then dimmed to reveal Yasiin Bey (formerly known as the rapper Mos Def) who recited a profound prayer. He was then accompanied by Albarn and Omar Souleyman for a preview of a brand new Gorillaz track Damascus.
Meanwhile, another pre-recorded segment came from Portishead. It was a very rare public appearance from the group, who proved that even if they’re unable to make new music, they can still move many to tears with their old songs, in this case a version of Roads from the 1994 debut album.
Then there was Eric Cantona, and Mahmoud Sarsak. Sarsak was the teammate of Suleiman al-Obeid, the so-called ‘Palestinian Pele’ who was killed by Israeli Defence Forces last month whilst was doing nothing more than waiting for humanitarian aid.
Cantona unequivocally called on football authorities to boycott Israel, saying “clubs everywhere must refuse to play Israeli teams… football fans around the world, recognise your power - those teams represent you. It’s time for everyone to get off the sidelines, who will follow me?”
There were others, of course. Brian Eno made a rare live appearance, alongside Paul Weller, Nadine Shah and Alexis Taylor from Hot Chip. Richard Gere, Benedict Cumberbatch and Florence Pugh all made speeches and others who made appearances included Paloma Faith, Mabel, Jamie xx and James Blake.
It’s not too late contribute to the Together For Palestine fund. You can make a donation by clicking here.
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