Pharrell Williams, Queen + Adam Lambert, Alicia Keys, OneRepublic, H.E.R., and Carole King are among the headliners set for the Global Citizen Festival to be held on the Great Lawn of Central Park in New York on Saturday, Sept. 28, it was announced Tuesday.
The Festival, presented by Citi and Cisco, will be emceed by returning hosts Deborra-lee Furness and Hugh Jackman. Co-hosts include Matt Bomer, Rachel Brosnahan, Elvis Duran, Taraji P. Henson, Rami Malek, Bill Nye, Joy Reid and Forest Whitaker.
Connie Britton, Nina Dobrev, Becky G, Dakota Johnson, Becky Lynch, Aasif Mandvi, Bridget Moynahan, Kal Penn, Erin Richards, Seth Rollins and Savannah Sellers. David Gray and NCT 127 are also confirmed to join the festival as performers.
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Special guest performances will be given by French Montana, Ben Platt, and Jon Batiste & Stay Human.
The annual festival — which was founded in 2012 — aims to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030, leaving this year’s festival to mark a critical year for the movement and the start of a 10-year countdown.
“After next year we will have only ten short years to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals,” CEO of Global Citizen Hugh Evans said in a statement sent to The Hollywood Reporter. “The policies and progress that we make this year, and into 2020, will determine whether we successfully eradicate extreme poverty by 2030, and failure is not an option for the world’s poor. We are thrilled to have such an iconic lineup of artists, hosts, and partners join us at such a pivotal moment for this fight as we ask governments and world leaders to take action and end extreme poverty.”
Lambert, who will take the stage with Queen for the festival, said, “I’m so excited to be a part of this year’s Global Citizen Festival working towards one goal. Although there is still work to be done, I am blown away by this organization’s progress to end extreme poverty and can’t wait to celebrate how far we’ve come.”
Queen’s Brian May said, “Like Live Aid in 1985, we believe this concert will be a milestone. It will generate practical solutions to address the world’s glaring anomalies. Global Citizen is an organization which has already moved mountains. We hope this concert will be the beginning of a new era in which all creatures on Earth will eventually benefit.”
“I can’t wait to return to the Global Citizen Festival stage this year,” Williams said of performing. “From New York to South Africa, and everywhere in between, this movement is so inspiring. Everyone who attends the Festival is fighting for our future and to make the world a better place, and that is something that I am incredibly proud to be a part of.”
Keys is returning to the festival after first performing for Global Citizens’ 2013 event. “So much progress has been made by Global Citizen towards ending extreme poverty since I last performed at the 2013 Festival. It was one of the most empowering experiences, and I cannot wait to give and feel all the amazing energy in Central Park again,” she said.
For the sixth consecutive year, MSNBC & Comcast NBCUniversal will air a live simulcast of the Festival on MSNBC and for the eighth consecutive year, iHeartMedia will broadcast the Festival live across its radio stations nationwide and stream the event digitally on iHeartRadio.
The event does not require tickets to attend but rather encourages attendees and the public to “take action” in tackling important issues instead, such as calling on world leaders and corporations to help achieve gender equality by urging Pennsylvania and Massachusetts to pass legislation and set the minimum age for marriage at 18 with no loopholes; call on donor countries to renew and increase funding to support UNFPA Supplies; ensure workplace safety by petitioning for governments to implement the International Labour Organization’s Convention on Violence and Harassment in the World of Work; and promote women’s entrepreneurship.
“We’re thrilled to have these incredible artists joining us for the 2019 Global Citizen Festival and engaging their fans in the fight to end extreme poverty by 2030,” said Director of Global Policy and Government Affairs at Global Citizen Leticia Pfeffer. “We encourage all Global Citizens to take action and power the movement for gender equality. When we empower and invest in girls and women, we can grow economies and achieve a world where #SheIsEqual.”
The festival lineup announcement comes amid news that Common, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Jackman are among the stars to be featured in a National Geographic docuseries Activate: The Global Citizen Movement, which will highlight efforts to fight global poverty. The program will follow Common as he fights for criminal justice reform. Meanwhile, Chopra Jonas will campaign to break down barriers to girls’ education, and Jackman will work on the group’s New York City concert. Other featured celebs include Becky G, Uzo Aduba and Usher.
Aug. 27, 11:52 a.m. Updated with additional co-hosts and special guests.
