Taylor Swift Photo: IC

A virtual concert packed with A-listers - from The Rolling Stones to Taylor Swift to Billie Eilish - entertained fans around the world with a show celebrating health workers, as billions shelter at home due to coronavirus.

Lizzo, Jennifer Lopez, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney and LL Cool J also joined in the Lady Gaga-curated online party, which was backed by the international advocacy organization Global Citizen in partnership with the World Health Organization.

Before opening the show Lady Gaga - who began working with Global Citizen and the WHO weeks ago to fundraise for the battle against COVID-19 - said she was praying for medical workers and also "thinking of all of you that are at home, who are wondering when this is all going to be different."

"What I'd like to do tonight, if I can, is just give you the permission to, for a moment - smile," she said as she broke into a rendition of Nat King Cole's "Smile."

Stevie Wonder then wowed with a tribute to the late soul legend Bill Withers.

Sitting at his home piano Wonder, who turns 70 next month, played "Lean On Me" before launching into his own "Love's In Need Of Love Today" in his singular crystal-clear voice.

Mick Jagger also appeared ageless despite his 76 years as he delivered the classic "You Can't Always Get What You Want," as his fellow Stones played from their respective homes, including a grinning Charlie Watts on the air drums.

Also at her piano Swift played the vulnerable "Soon You'll Get Better," which the pop phenom wrote about her mother's struggles with cancer.

Global Citizen intended the primetime event broadcast on major television networks worldwide - and hosted by US late-night television personalities Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert - not as a fundraiser but as a moment of unity through song.

They also planned it as a "rallying cry" to support health workers, while coronavirus has at least 4.5 billion people forced or urged to stay home.

Prior to the event Global Citizen began urging philanthropists, companies and governments to support the WHO in its coronavirus response efforts, saying it has raised $35 million for local organizations and the international health body's COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund.

'True heroes'

In addition to performances - McCartney played "Lady Madonna," as Lizzo belted out a powerful version of "A Change Is Gonna Come" - the event highlighted the efforts of essential workers worldwide, including medical personnel and those delivering food and sanitary products to vulnerable populations.

None other than Queen Bey herself joined in to thank "true heroes" who are "away from their families, taking care of ours."

Beyonce, a Houston native, also emphasized that the coronavirus pandemic in the US is disproportionately affecting black Americans, who make up a large part of "essential parts of the workforce that do not have the luxury of working from home," she said.

Indian actor Shah Rukh Khan and Nigerian singer Burna Boy were among the participants in the event that included former US first ladies Michelle Obama and Laura Bush as well as media personality and philanthropist Oprah.

British actor Idris Elba - who was diagnosed with and recovered from coronavirus - also took part.

"Tonight, through the universal language of music, we salute the bravery and sacrifice of health heroes and others," said UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in a clip played during the broadcast. 

"And please join our call for a global ceasefire to focus on our common enemy - the virus."

The show closed with a moving harmony of Celine Dion, Lady Gaga, Andrea Bocelli and John Legend performing Dion and Bocelli's 1999 hit duet "The Prayer," as renowned concert pianist Lang Lang accompanied.

Reaction in China 

"Charlie Puth's performance of 'See You Again' was absolutely amazing, but we couldn't help noticing his bed was a little messy," wrote one Chinese netizen on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo after the show. 

Similar comments online about the stars' performances, such as Jack Johnson's simple acoustic guitar performance while sitting on his front steps, got netizens talking about how stars seem no different from ordinary people while staying at home during the pandemic.

While netizens were glad to see Chinese singers take the virtual stage, such as Jacky Cheung and Eason Chan, who greeted the audience in Cantonese, Putonghua (Standard Chinese) and English during the concert, the closing performance of "The Prayer" by Chinese pianist Lang Lang, Andrea Bocelli, Celine Dion and Lady Gaga was a clear winner among viewers in China.  

"It was like witnessing history. From Live Aid in 1985 to Live Aid-One World: Together At Home in 2020… After 35 years, despite the changing roster of superstars across generations, the power of art remains," noted one Chinese netizen on Sina Weibo.  

Many netizens in China who were not able to watch live, after getting a peek at the concert through various clips on social media, expressed their strong eagerness to watch the complete show once it became available online. The related hashtag had reached 440 million views and 294,000 posts on Sina Weibo as of Sunday afternoon. 


Newspaper headline: Coming together