Here’s what went down at ‘Together For Palestine’, with Damon Albarn, Brian Eno, Richard Gere, Florence Pugh and more

Brian Eno held his ‘Together For Palestine’ charity show at London’s Wembley Arena last night (Wednesday September 17), where over 150 artists and cultural figures united to show solidarity and raise funds for the people of Gaza.

Check out everything that happened at the show, footage, key speeches and more below.

Held at the OVO Arena Wembley, the night saw huge performances from Damon Albarn, Paul Weller, Cat Burns, Rachel Chinouriri, Yasiin Bey, Bastille’s Dan Smith and more, and had presenters including Eric Cantona, PinkPantheress, Richard Gere, Benedict Cumberbatch, Florence Pugh, and Nicola Coughlan.

The event, which was also available as a livestream, raised just under £1.5million for the ‘Together For Palestine Fund’, which will be distributed to Palestinian-led organisations such as Taawon, Palestine Children’s Relief Fund and Palestine Medical Relief Service.

Host Guz Khan and actor Riz Ahmed introduced the show, and described it as a display of “local voices, but global solidarity”.

“To people here and around the world watching, you are here tonight to show the people of Palestine that, while the world leaders and governments continue to let them down, we will not,” Khan said.

After introducing painter Malak Mattar to the stage to share her story of growing up in Palestine, the hosts explained that the performances across the show would be backed by artworks from Palestinian talent, and introduced a B2B set with Jamie xx and Palestinian DJ Sama’ Abdulhadi as the first live act of the night.

Hot Chip teamed up with Ibibio Sound Machine and Trans Voices, before performances from Palestinian composter Faraj Suleiman, African singer Obongjayar, Palestinian singer Nai Barghouti, James Blake, Paloma Faith, and a duet between Rachel Chinouriri and Cat Burns. The latter broke out a moving rendition of their collaborative song ‘Even’ for their segment.

“Music is something that not only brings people together, but something that has been used for revolution and change,” Chinouriri said. “When Cat and I wrote this song, we spoke about how difficult it is to be perceived as the odd-one-out due to things beyond our control… now, years on, seeing how Palestinians have not only been villanised for living on their homeland, but have been under attack just by being born in their land they are from, is heartbreaking.”

Between performances, Choose Love co-founder and CEO Josie Naughton took to the stage to introduce representatives from the charities the funds will be supporting, Benedict Cumberbatch, Amer Hlehel and Ruth Negga recited poetry by Palestinian writer Mahmoud Darwish, and Francesca Albanese (United Nations special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories) gave an impassioned speech about how “more than 65,000 people have been killed in Gaza by Israel’s fire, 20,000 of them are just children, and many say the real number is horrendously higher”.

“Palestinians face the horror of forced displacement, mass arrests, violent raids daily… each life is a universe, forever gone,” she added. “Palestinian people continue to suffer while our governments turn a blind eye, or worse, they are complicit. They trade weapons, they host Israeli officials, [and] they criminalise us ‘terrorists’, those who stand against genocide.”

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Brian Eno, who organised the event, then took to the stage alongside Paul Weller, Damon Albarn, Adnan Joubran, Hot Chip’s Alexis Taylor and Nadine Shah to perform a specially composed piece of music for the event, before reading the Khaled Juma poem Oh Rascal Children of Gaza.

Later in the evening, Albarn returned to the stage for both an impassioned medley of Palestinian traditional songs, which he performed alongside London Arab Orchestra and the Juzour Dance Collective, and a collaboration with Yasiin Bey and Omar Souleyman, where they gave a preview of their brand new track ‘Damascus’, drawn from the upcoming Gorillaz album ‘The Mountain’.

Damon Albarn’s and Gorillaz performances for Together for Palestine live pic.twitter.com/eun8Znw1NY

— sky (@invislovebot) September 17, 2025

GORILLAZ STAND WITH PALESTINE!!!! pic.twitter.com/wLH4Dt3yRU

— Flan (@phonertoarizona) September 17, 2025

There was a segment titled ‘The Fathers’, which saw Riz Ahmed, Guy Pearce, Motaz Malhees, Amer Hlehel and Inua Ellams recount the stories of Palestinian men, Richard Gere took to the stage to celebrate the doctors working in Gaza and encourage people to “speak the truth with generosity and love, that’s how you change things.”

Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan pushed for other artists to speak up, saying: “There are many artists that I love and I know you love, who have hundreds of millions of followers, and they’re saying nothing.”

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Similarly, Florence Pugh gave a short but powerful speech declaring that “silence in the face of such suffering is not neutrality, it is complicity. Empathy should not be this hard”, while Jameela Jamil, Louis Theroux, Chicken Shop Date host Amelia Dimoldenberg, Rina Sawayama, Laura Whitmore, and Leigh-Anne Pinnock also took to the stage throughout the night to encourage donations.

“I think a lot about what I can do, not only as an individual, but as an artist,” said PinkPantheress. “We have a responsibility to use our platforms. Neutrality or silence shouldn’t be an option. Give Palestine your voice, and when your voice goes hoarse, hang your flags, wear your keffiyeh. Show them we are here.”

Holocaust survivor Stephen Kapos took to the stage with photographer Misan Harriman to share: “As someone who survived the darker chapter of our shared history, I know what it means to be stripped of dignity, of land, of hope. That is why I remain steadfast in my commitment to the Palestinian people. Their struggle for freedom, justice, and return is not separate from mine, it is a part of the same cry for humanity.”

Broadcaster Mehdi Hasan and Palestinian war reporter Yara Eid shed light on the 270 journalists who have been killed in Gaza, listing their names, photographs and stories on the screen behind them, and football icon Eric Cantona later took to the stage to call for action from the sporting world.

“After Russia invaded Ukraine, FIFA and UEFA suspended Russia. We are now 716 days into what Amnesty International have called a genocide, and yet Israel continues to be allowed to participate. Why the double standards?” he said.

Other live performances came from Celeste, Greentea Peng – who joined up with Neneh Cherry and Bastille’s Dan Smith for a rendition of ‘7 Seconds’ – Palestinian singer Saint Levant who broke out renditions of ‘Wazira’, ‘Kalamantina’ and ‘Deira’, and Palestinian-Chilean singer Elyanna. Portishead also recorded a live performance of their classic track ‘Roads’ specifically for the event, which was projected onto the screens.

Ahead of last night’s show, Billie Eilish, Finneas, Joaquin Phoenix, Cillian Murphy, Steve Coogan and more featured in a new message for Together For Palestine.

“It’s important to speak out now, not when this is over. Right now, while it’s happening,” the latter is heard saying in the clip. “Pressurise your government, lend your support to those who are peacefully campaigning, call for a ceasefire, stop the killing.”

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For Eilish, the contribution comes after she spoke out on social media in July and called Israel’s relocation plans for the people of Gaza “horrifying”.

Another charity event for Palestine will take place next month curated by Paul Weller and aiming to raise money for people in Gaza. Dubbed ‘Gig For Gaza’, the show takes place at London’s Troxy on Friday October 17, and will see Primal Scream, Inhaler and Maverick Sabre performing alongside the former Jam frontman.

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