Tears as Ariana Grande leads 'night of love' at Manchester benefit concert

Updated

Ariana Grande was moved to tears and told the crowd "Manchester, I love you with all my heart" after a star-studded benefit concert for the victims of a terror attack at her recent show.

The US pop singer, 23, played tracks including Be Alright, Side To Side and Break Free during the One Love Manchester charity concert after the mother of one of the teenage victims said her daughter would have wanted to hear the hits.

Grande seemed overcome by emotion throughout the show which came less than 24 hours after seven people were killed and 48 injured in a terror attack in London Bridge.

One Love Manchester Benefit Concert
One Love Manchester Benefit Concert

The singer said she had not planned to play so many of hits during the show but changed her mind after meeting the mother of Olivia Campbell-Hardy, 15, who was among the victims of the blast that killed 22 people at her concert on May 22.

"I had the pleasure of meeting Olivia's mummy a few days ago and I started to cry and gave her a big hug and she said 'stop crying, because Olivia wouldn't have wanted you to cry'," she told the crowd.

"And then she told me Olivia would have wanted to hear the hits. We had a different show planned and we had a rehearsal yesterday and we changed everything."

Grande, who wore a white oversized One Love Manchester sweatshirt during the show at the Emirates Old Trafford cricket ground, thanked the crowd for "being so happy and strong and unified".

"This night is the kind of thing the world really needs right now," she added.

Highlights of the show included a surprise appearance by Mancunian Liam Gallagher, who was joined by Coldplay for a rendition of the Oasis hit Live Forever, which ended with Gallagher throwing his tambourine into the crowd.

He dedicated the song "to the beautiful people who were killed and injured in the Manchester terror attack".

Earlier in the night Coldplay joined Grande on stage to sing Oasis's hit Don't Look Back In Anger, which has been an anthem for Manchester since the tragedy.

During the show Grande duetted with Miley Cyrus on Crowded House's Don't Dream It's Over and was joined on stage by her boyfriend Mac Miller as they performed their collaboration The Way and Miller's track Dang!

Grande performed her duet Better Days with Victoria Monet and sang Where Is The Love? with Black Eyed Peas.

She also joined a choir from Parrs Wood High School to perform their version of her song, My Everything, and closed the show with her track One Last Time and Over The Rainbow from The Wizard of Oz.

The gig marked Grande's first performance since bomber Salman Abedi detonated a bomb, killing her fans and parents as they left her show at Manchester Arena.

Grande fans who had attended the gig were offered free passes to the benefit concert which was opened by Marcus Mumford following a one-minute silence for those who lost their lives.

The show also saw performances from Take That and Robbie Williams, who led the crowd in a singalong to his hit Strong, with the lyrics changed to "Manchester, we're strong, we're strong, we're strong, we're still singing our songs".

Other stars who took to the stage included Pharrell Williams, One Direction star Niall Horan, Justin Bieber, Little Mix and Imogen Heap while Katy Perry performed her hit Roar, saying: "We will not be silenced, Manchester."

Event organisers said £2 million had been raised by text and online donations during the three-hour concert, as the British Red Cross confirmed that more than £10 million had been raised for the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund in total.

Grande's hit One Last Time has been re-released as a charity single, with proceeds going to the campaign.

Event commander Chief Superintendent Stuart Ellison said the day passed without cause for concern, with just one man arrested on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly.

He said: "Throughout the day we have stood united, welcomed visitors from across the country and paid tribute to those who tragically lost their lives in the attack at Manchester Arena."

He continued: "My thanks goes to those who joined us at the events today and remained patient as we carried out an increased number of searches to ensure everyone remained safe and enjoyed themselves."

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