Following a hugely successful return to The London Palladium, last night, innovative global entertainment and music company The Other Songs delivered anothe redition of The Other Songs Live, a special fundraiser in aid of The BRIT School, the UK’s leading free performing and creative arts school. The Other Songs have made history with last night’s event becoming theirbiggest fundraiser to date, with donations still coming in from the guests who attended.
Having sold over 2300 tickets, the sold out event brought together a curated selection of the world’s most celebrated songwriters, producers, composers, and next generation of talent for an unforgettable evening celebrating the craft of song writing and highlighting the importance of supporting and protecting arts education.
Following an introduction from The Other Songs’ CEO Alastair Webber, the show was off to a strong start as The BRIT School students opened the show with ‘Believer’ (Imagine Dragons), written by Justin Tranter. The Grammy nominated songwriter then performed a selection of their biggest work: ‘GoodLuck, Babe!’ (Chappell Roan), ‘Sorry’ (Justin Bieber), and ‘Cake By The Ocean’(DNCE).
Principal of The BRIT School, Stuart Worden, and Chairman, Josh Berger, took tothe stage to speak with the crowd on the importance of fundraising for artseducation, with Stuart commenting,
“The BRIT School is an adventurous playground where young artists can feel safe, be valued and be encouraged to make brave andinnovative art. Your support tonight will help the next generation of artiststrain and go on to change the world with their beautiful creativity.”
In full swing, the unforgettable event covered a range of performances from those on the stackedlineup, spanning spoken word, musical, and dance, with The BRIT School talent -both past and present - at the centre. The work of the school’s alumni was celebrated throughout the evening, including music of Olivia Dean, RAYE, and Amy Winehouse. Award winning producer Zach Nahome walked the audience through the stems of Olivia Dean’s hit ‘Man I Need’, before performing the track with a full band. Four BRIT students completed an emotional and movingdance soundtracked by a video of RAYE performing ‘Escapism’, taken from The Other Songs Live 2022 event at London’s KOKO, long before the song became asbig as it is today. A touching moment of the night, and finale of the show’sexcellent first half, saw a video interpretation of the meaning behind AmyWinehouse’s ‘Love Is A Losing Game’, created by The BRIT School’s digital artsstrand.
The show’s secondhalf began with 73 BRIT students performing a spectacular rendition of ‘Masquerade’ from the world famous Phantom of the Opera,introducing EGOT winning music theatre legend Andrew Lloyd Webber to the stage. During this section of The Other Songs Live, an incredibly special surprise performance unfolded as Sam Ryder emerged from thecrowd to sing ‘Gethsemane’ from Jesus Christ Superstar with Andrew Lloyd Webber on piano for the first time, ahead of Sam’s West End debut in the musical this summer.
Grammy Award winning songwriter Cathy Dennis performed hits she had penned across hercareer, including Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic’ and Kylie Minogue’s ‘Can’t Get You Out Of My Head’.
Later in the event,the audience was delighted by a second surprise with a performance frommulti-platinum artist and BRIT alumnus Rex Orange County, who performed tracks ‘Happiness’ and ‘Loving Is Easy’ on the piano. The unexpected appearance was not Rex’s first time performing on the Palladium stage, having previousl y sold out 7 nights at the iconic venue.
Ending on a high, Nile Rodgers performed ‘We Are Family’ (Sister Sledge), ‘Let’s Dance’ (David Bowie), and finally ‘Good Times’, with BRIT School students joining him onstage and garnering an overwhelming response and standing ovation from the sold out audience.
Previously, The Other Songs have raised over £180,000 for music charities including The BRIT School, Nordoff & Robbins, and The Ivors Academy Trust. This year’s The Other Songs Live event was organised in exclusive partnership with The BRIT School, with all proceeds from the event goingto them directly as part of The Other Songs’ pledge to support art education which has been decimated by funding cuts from multiple governments.Last night’s event was The Other Songs’ biggest fundraiser yet, with further donationsstill coming through.
In tandem toraising vital funds for arts education, The Other Songs also utilised this year’s event to raise awareness around the decimation of arts education funding from multiple governments. As a result, several government personnelwere in attendance for last night’s event including Jess Brown-Fuller MP(Liberal Democrat, Chair of APPG for Performing Arts Education and Training); Bambos Charalambous MP (Labour, Chair of APPG for Music Education); Dame Caroline Dinenage MP (Conservative, Chair of Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee); Nigel Huddleston MP (Conservative, Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport); Lottie Moore (Special Advisor to the Leader of the Opposition); and Alex Urwin (Head of Strategic Partnerships & Projects, Prime Minister's Office).
This year’s The Other Songs Live was promoted in association with AEG Presents and sponsored by The Orchard, Universal Music Publishing Group,PRS for Music, Simons Muirhead Burton, Spotify and SonyMusic.
The Other Songs Live stood as a powerful celebration of songwriting,creativity, and the transformative impact of arts education and the need toprotect it, uniting legendary talent and emerging voices on one iconic stage. The Other Songs reinforced the urgent need to protect and invest in the future of creative arts education for generations to come.
Alastair Webber, CEO of The Other Songs said:
“Last night The Other Songs Live partnered with The BRITSchool and brought together all sides of culture on stage at The LondonPalladium. Our greatest ever songwriters and storytellers performed live withcurrent BRIT School students about to embark on their careers. Only 42% ofschools in the UK offer a music GCSE. That must change. Every child deservesfree arts education, no matter their background, and this show was proof ofconcept to the max.”
Andrew Lloyd Webber said:
"The BRIT School has proven time and time again thatwhat we give to arts education, the arts give us back tenfold. The School pioneers free, world-class artseducation in multiple disciplines for young people, regardless of background,and has produced global superstars with far-reaching cultural, social andeconomic impact, not least for the British Exchequer. Every child deserves free arts education and the untoldopportunities it brings."
