Prince Harry has called for vaccines to be “distributed to everyone everywhere” at a star-studded charity concert in Los Angeles.
The Duke of Sussex appeared alongside dozens of celebrities at the Vax Live event on Sunday night, a charity performance in aid of the international Covid vaccination effort.
US President Joe Biden, who also at the event, spoke about the Covid-19 vaccine being safe.
The concert included performances by Lopez, Eddie Vedder, Foo Fighters, J Balvin and H.E.R.
Ben Affleck, Chrissy Teigen, Jimmy Kimmel, Sean Penn and David Letterman appeared as special guest speakers.
Everyone in the audience was fully vaccinated. Media and production staff needed to show a negative Covid test before entering the stadium.
“The vaccines are safe. I promise you. They work,” said Biden, who was accompanied in a video message with first lady Jill Biden. Both appeared as part of the “We Can Do This” initiative to increase confidence in the vaccines.
“We’re working with leaders around the world to share more vaccines and boost production to make sure every country has the vaccines they need,” the president continued. “If we get this done, we won’t have to miss another moment.”
Global Citizen said $53.8 million in philanthropic and corporate commitments helped procure nearly 10.3 million doses, exceeding the goal for the Vax Live campaign.
Prince Harry said providing vaccines across the globe is imperative, particularly those in the poorest countries.
“The vaccine must be distributed to everyone everywhere,” he said. He along with his wife Meghan are leading an effort to raise money for the vaccine-sharing program COVAX, which hopes to produce $19 billion to pay for the vaccines for medical workers.
“We cannot rest or truly recover until there is fair distribution to every corner of the world,” he said. “The virus does not respect borders and access to the vaccine cannot be determined by geography.”
The event also highlighted first responders and health care workers’ efforts during the pandemic. Selena Gomez, the show’s host, called essential and frontline workers “reliable” and “brave.”
“Many of us had to stay home, but you all didn’t have a choice,” the singer said. “You set an example for all of us, both in how you stayed on the job and that we need to get vaccinated as soon as possible.”
Before Lopez’s performance, she told the audience that she was unable to spend Christmas with her mother. The singer went on to invite her fully-vaccinated mom on stage, then the two sang their rendition of Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.”
Eddie Vedder said the concert was the first “taste of the life we’ve all been missing” for more than a year.
“This is a feeling we have not had in some time,” he said. “There’s a microphone, a crowd. It feels good.”
Follow us on:
