Global Goal: Unite for Our Future — The Concert is all about using the power of music to ensure the solutions to the coronavirus pandemic are available equally to everyone, everywhere.
And the actress, singer, and philanthropist Jennifer Hudson brought home that message of unity perfectly with her beautiful performance of “Where Peaceful Waters Flow,” a classic made famous by Gladys Knight and the Pips in 1973.
Hudson introduced her performance by talking about the importance of working together to bring about change.
“The power of unity creates change,” she said. “So let’s keep coming together to create that change, good change."
Performing from the top deck of a boat, the Academy Award-winning singer can be seen against the serene backdrop of the Chicago River, passing under its many bridges in the late afternoon sunlight. Her accompanying guitarist and percussionist sit a socially-distanced six-feet behind her on the deck.
It was a truly special performance and a wonderful way to open Global Goal: Unite for Our Future — The Concert.
And it was an important moment too, as the first performance to follow the incredible impact of Global Goal: Unite for Our Future — The Summit, a pledging event held earlier in the day on Saturday. World leaders, philanthropists, and corporates together committed to accelerate the development and equitable distribution of COVID-19 tests, treatments, and vaccines, and mitigate the impacts of the pandemic on the world's most vulnerable people.
The Global Goal: Unite for Our Future campaign mobilized more than $1.5 billion in cash grants and $5.4 billion in loans and guarantees, for a total of $6.9 billion pledged to provide equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments, and vaccines, as well as support for the world's poorest and most marginalized communities.
It was an astonishing result that will prove vital in ensuring no one is left behind in the fight against this virus — and we’re celebrating with some of the world’s biggest musical artists, including Hudson, Miley Cyrus, Usher, Coldplay, and more.
But it’s not the first time Hudson has stepped up in a big way to help tackle the pandemic through music.
Hudson also lent her support — and her incredible vocals — to Global Citizen’s ‘One World: Together at Home’ broadcast on April 18, when she performed ‘Memory’ from Cats and Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah from her home.
"This reality teaches you to be prepared for anything ... We have no choice but to keep on going," she said to fans at the time.
And in December 2019, Hudson also joined us for the Global Citizen Prize at the Royal Albert Hall in London, performing a stunning acapella cover of “Hallelujah” on a night honoring some of the world’s fiercest and most determined activists.
🚨🚨 #GlobalGoalUnite & 🇪🇺 @EU_Commission have mobilized Over $1.5B USD in Cash Grants and $5.4B in Loans and Guarantees for a total of $6.9B Pledged for COVID-19 Relief.
— Global Citizen Impact (@GlblCtznImpact) June 27, 2020
⭕️Together we are #UnitedAgainstCoronavirus#GlobalGoalUnitepic.twitter.com/qwjv3KxXsD