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Ariana Grande Leads Incredible Benefit Concert In Tribute To Manchester Attack Victims

Ariana Grande Leads Incredible Benefit Concert In Tribute To Manchester Attack Victims

Absolutely amazing.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

Emotions were bound to be high for everyone attending and performing in the concert at Manchester's Old Trafford Cricket Ground.

The gig was set up in the wake of the Manchester Arena bombing which killed 22 people and caused serious injuries to more than 50 people. Tickets to the spectacular show sold out within minutes due to the impressive line-up, including Ariana Grande, Take That, Little Mix, Coldplay, Pharrell, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry and others.

Some of the people injured in last month's terror attack were clapped on by dozens of concert goers when they arrived for the gig.

Jason Mumford, lead singer of Mumford and Sons, opened the concert and told the crowd: "Let's not be afraid."

He was followed up by Take That, who performed their hits 'Shine', 'Giants' and 'Rule the World', with young and old screaming along. There were rumours that Robbie Williams would join the boys and people's prayers were almost answered. Robbie did stand with Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen, but that was about it.

Robbie Williams with Take That
Robbie Williams with Take That

Credit: Twitter

Robbie got the 60 thousand strong crowd singing along to his track 'Strong', which he changed the lyrics to make the song about Manchester. Wearing a Justin Bieber 'Purpose World Tour' hoodie, he also belted out 'Angels'.

The funky Pharrell was up next. He had people grooving to his collaboration with Daft Punk 'Get Lucky', before telling the crowd: "Despite all the things going on in this place....I don't see any fear in this building. All we feel here tonight is love, resilience, positivity." He brought Miley Cyrus on stage to perform 'Happy'.

Cyrus says: "For me, the most important responsibility we have on this entire planet is to take care of one another." She dedicated her new song 'Inspired' to all the people injured in the bombing, which caused some in the audience to burst into tears.

Miley Cyrus on stage
Miley Cyrus on stage

Credit: Twitter

The pop idol was followed by former One Direction singer Niall Horan, who opened with his recent single 'Slow Hands'. He says that he's addicted to Manchester and was really touched by the outpouring of love and support following the attack.

Scooter Braun, Ariana Grande's manger and co-producer of the concert, thanked the crowd for coming in spite of last night's terror attack in London. He also read out a message from one of the victims still recovering in hospital who said to spread love, not hate. Girl group Little Mix came onto the stage and performed their massive hit 'Wings'.

Little Mix on stage
Little Mix on stage

Credit: Twitter

Imogen Heap was introduced by Ariana, who sang a hauntingly beautiful rendition of 'Hide and Seek'. The track was definitely a tear-jerker. Katy Perry donned a big fur coat as she stepped onto the stage where she commended Ariana on her strength and courage for putting on the performance and bringing everyone together. She produced a slowed down, acoustic version of 'Part of Me' as well as her high-octane hit 'Roar'.

Katy Perry on stage
Katy Perry on stage

Credit: Twitter

The crowd went absolutely wild when Justin Bieber came onto the stage with an acoustic guitar and told them 'isn't it better to love than hate?' The Canadian singer played 'Love Yourself', 'Cold Water' before breaking down in tears when honouring the 22 people killed in the bombing.

One of the most adorable scenes from the night was a policeman seen dancing with kids.


Coldplay moved everyone by singing the Oasis classic 'Don't Look Back In Anger' before rainbow confetti exploded into the crowd during 'Fix You'. The British band also performed 'Viva La Vida' and their recent track 'Something Just Like This'.

Fans were treated to a surprise performance from Liam Gallagher. Dressed in a big, orange jacket he jammed with Coldplay and rocked the crowd with his new single 'Wall of Glass' and 'Live Forever'. Social media was begging brother Noel to step onto the stage to play some of their old hits, but alas we weren't that lucky.

Liam Gallagher on stage
Liam Gallagher on stage

Credit: Twitter

The woman of the hour, Ariana Grande, bravely stepped onto the stage several times over the course of the evening. Every time she was greeted with fierce applause and cheers from the crowd. She opened with 'Be Alright' with a slew of back-up dancers behind her, before she launched into her massive hit 'Break Free'.

She was praised on social media for putting on a strong performance.

She sang a duet with Victoria Monet, dressed in matching oversized white jumpers and denim jeans. The 23-year-old performed 'Where is the Love' with the Black Eyed Peas, a poignant song about peace and unity. The group thanked emergency services who responded to the Manchester bombing and London terror attack.

Ariana joined the Parrs Wood Highschool Choir to sing 'Power of Love' before she sang two tracks with her boyfriend Mac Miller.

Mac Miller joins Ariana Grande on stage
Mac Miller joins Ariana Grande on stage

Credit: Twitter

Miley Cyrus was brought back on stage to do a duet with Ariana. The duo performed a beautiful cover of Crowded House's 'Don't Dream It's Over' with the crowd helping them belt out the iconic chorus.

Trying to hold back tears, Ariana told the crowd: "I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for being here today. For coming together and being strong and unified. The kind of love and unity that you're displaying is the medicine the world really needs right now.

"I had the pleasure of meeting Olivia's mommy and when I met her I started crying. She said that Olivia would have wanted to hear the hits."

She added that because of that, they changed the set list to include the chart-topping song 'Side to Side'. Then A-list singers watched on as young Ariana sang 'Love Me Harder'.

All the performing artists joined Ariana on stage while she did her best not to cry during 'One Last Time'. Then the incredible, outstanding and emotional concert finished with the young singer performing a gorgeous rendition of 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow'. Her incredible voice moved many to tears, including herself.

Ariana Grande moved to tears
Ariana Grande moved to tears

Credit: Twitter

The night was also filled with several video messages from Paul McCartney, David Beckham, Stevie Wonder and U2, DJ Khalid, Chance the Rapper, Kendall Jenner, Clean Bandit, Dua Lipa, Sean Paul and many more.

It's believed that tonight's benefit gig raised about £2 million alone, in addition to the more than £2 million raised from a page on GoFundMe.

Featured Image Credit: Twitter

Topics: Manchester