NEWS
The major Trans Mission concert took place at London’s OVO Arena Wembley yesterday evening on Wednesday March 11, drawing around 10,000 attendees along with a wide range of performers who gathered to show their support for the transgender community. Below is a breakdown of what took place during the event, including live performances, notable moments and important speeches.
The special one night event was put together by Olly Alexander alongside Mighty Hoopla founder Glyn Fussell. The aim was to send a clear message that transgender people deserve recognition, appreciation and celebration, while also showing that the entertainment world stands firmly behind them.
Olly Alexander at Trans Mission, Wembley. CREDIT: @robynskinner7
Rahim Redcar at Trans Mission, Wembley. CREDIT: @robynskinner7
The show carried the official theme A Night of Solidarity For A Lifetime Of Change. It also focused on fundraising for charities, with proceeds divided equally between the Good Law Project and the transgender support organisation Not A Phase.
Artists who took the stage included Rahim Redcar, who performed songs originally released by Christine And The Queens including Full Of Life and Deep Holes. Kate Nash also appeared, performing her new track GERM along with her well known song Foundations. Former NME Cover artist Rose Gray delivered performances of April and also introduced a brand new track titled Straight From The Club To Your Heart.
Sophie Ellis Bextor later performed her popular track Murder On The Dancefloor. Wolf Alice, fresh from their recent BRIT Awards victory, performed stripped back versions of Leaning Against The Wall and Don’t Delete The Kisses. Olly Alexander also performed a selection of songs from Years and Years.
Before Olly Alexander took to the stage, legendary actor Sir Ian McKellen introduced him and delivered Shakespeare’s The Strangers’ Case speech from Thomas More. This is the same speech he recently performed on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert and it touches on themes surrounding immigration and how society treats those seen as different.
Additional performers included Beverley Knight, Gottmik, Kae Tempest, MNEK, Sugababes, Beth Ditto from Gossip, Tom Rasmussen, and Queen vocalist Adam Lambert. Romy from The xx also appeared for a short DJ set alongside HAAi and Jasmine.4.T, while Jasmine.4.T also welcomed Jacob Alon as a surprise guest during the night.
Alongside Sir Ian McKellen, several other well known figures spoke during the evening including Jordan Stephens, Nicola Coughlan, Russell Tovey, Tia Kofi and Green Party co leader Zack Polanski among others.
“Tonight we are here saying ‘We will not be blamed, we will not be distracted,’” Polanski said as he addressed the crowd at Wembley. “As a gay man, I know that when they come for one of us, they come for all of us. We will all stand together.”
One of the evening’s most emotional highlights came when Caroline Litman took to the stage. She wrote the book Her Name Is Alice, which tells the story of her transgender daughter who died by suicide. During her heartfelt speech she honoured her daughter’s memory before introducing Beth Ditto and activist and model Munroe Bergdorf. The moment ended with a standing ovation from the audience.
Beth Ditto at Trans Mission, Wembley. CREDIT: @robynskinner7
“You have always seen a link between music, art and politics. When you look at people who make art, usually marginalised communities are right at the forefront of those spaces,” Olly Alexander told NME backstage, sitting alongside activist and the founder of Not A Phase, Dani St James.
“Music brings us together… Something like tonight, while it is so positive and so joyful and celebratory, it’s also about working out how we can turn it into change moving forward.”
Adam Lambert also spoke with NME backstage and shared why he believes gatherings like this are important for raising awareness while also strengthening unity and understanding.
“These are the kinds of events and causes that I will always put my energy into. Being an artist is amazing because we can use our platforms to affect the greater good and create a ripple effect,” he said. “If you don’t [speak out], you’re letting members of the community down. It’s a human rights issue. If you can look in the mirror and say that you treat people how you’d want to be treated, that’s a simple way of putting it.
“Everyone deserves respect and everyone deserves the safety of being able to exist. Trans people are no exception to that.”
Adam Lambert at Trans Mission, Wembley. CREDIT: @robynskinner7
The concert also comes after musicians including Charli XCX, Self Esteem and Wolf Alice previously signed a public statement supporting the transgender community within the UK music scene last year.
This came shortly after the UK Supreme Court decision on April 16, where judges ruled unanimously that under the Equality Act the legal definition of a woman is determined by biological sex.
The statement was written by Tom Rasmussen together with Tom Mehrtens, Head Of Music and Entertainment at SATELLITE414, representing voices from across the UK music sector. Support also came from Olly Alexander and Martha Kinn, Manager and Founder of Kinndred Management.
Many other artists and industry figures also voiced their backing for those impacted by the ruling. Among them were Scissor Sisters, Perfume Genius, Garbage, Rachel Chinouriri, JADE, Lambrini Girls, Billy Bragg and others who publicly shared their support.
NEWS
Harry Styles paid tribute to the late David Hockney and reflected on his time in One Direction last night (June 12), as he kicked off his record-breaking residency at Wembley Stadium.
Hockney – whose painting of Styles was displayed at the National Portrait Gallery in 2023 – died on June 11, aged 88, and the musician honoured him during his set by sharing a quote from the painter on the big screens.
“What an artist is trying to do for people is bring them closer to something, because of course art is about sharing,” the quote read. “You wouldn’t be an artist unless you wanted to share an experience, a thought.”
Styles’ gig last night marked the first of 12 gigs at Wembley, which will see the star break the record for the most shows at the venue in a single tour. Coldplay previously held the record, delivering 10 gigs at the stadium last year as part of their Music Of The Spheres tour.
The London residency follows the Together, Together tour beginning in Amsterdam in May, and will be followed by stops in São Paulo, Mexico City, New York, Melbourne and Sydney. He will be supported by a different artist in each city, joined by Shania Twain in London, who delivered a set of hits and new tracks from her upcoming album, ‘Little Miss Twain’.
As the sounds of Simon And Garfunkel’s ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ played over the stadium PA, Styles made his way to the stage, kicking off his set with ‘Are You Listening Yet?’, from his latest album, ‘Kiss All The Time. Disco Occasionally’. Between renditions of ‘Golden’ and ‘Adore You’, he addressed the crowd for the first time, saying: “Our job tonight is to entertain you. Your job is to have as much fun as you possibly can.
“If you want to sing, if you want to dance, please feel free. Please feel free to be whoever it is you’ve always wanted to be tonight. We’ve got each other’s backs.”
Throughout the night, Styles subtly reworked some of the songs on the setlist. He dedicated ‘Taste Back’ “to all the ravers in the house”, as a snippet of Underworld’s ‘Born Slippy’ was interpolated into the song, while a brief burst of Talking Heads’ ‘This Must Be The Place’ was introduced to ‘Treat People With Kindness’. During ‘Dance No More’, the pop star’s band played part of the groove from Happy Mondays’ ‘Step On’, while Styles sang a snatch of Gorillaz’s ‘Clint Eastwood’.
There were also nods to Styles’ days in One Direction early in the set. As the musician left the stage after ‘Fine Line’, the string section on stage played a medley featuring clips of the group’s hits ‘Night Changes’ and ‘History’, plus Styles’ own track ‘Falling’. After ‘Keep Driving’, he took the time to reflect on Wembley’s connections to his and the boyband’s journeys.
“Just outside of this building, just next door, is Wembley Arena, and 16 years ago, my sister brought me to London for the very first time for my X Factor audition,” he said. “So driving here today, and any time I come through Wembley, means so much to me, ‘cause right in that building next door, I was put into a band. We were called One Direction.
The Together, Together setlist features a different surprise song each night at the start of the encore. Last night, Styles treated the Wembley audience to ‘Little Freak’, taken from ‘Harry’s House’, for the first time since 2023. After the song, he spoke to the audience for the final time, saying: “I don’t know if you’ve been listening to me for a week, or a month, or a year, or five years, or 10 years, or 16 years, or whatever it is, but you have changed my life over and over again. Thank you so much for being here and allowing us to do these shows. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
“Finally, 16 years ago, my mother signed me up for the X Factor without my knowledge. I wouldn’t be here today if she hadn’t done that. She’s here today – thank you so much. You’ve changed my life, all of you.” Referencing a lyric in ‘Dance No More’, he added: “Remember – respect your mother.”
‘Are You Listening Yet?’
‘Golden’
‘Adore You’
‘Watermelon Sugar’
‘Music From A Sushi Restaurant’
‘Taste Back’
‘Coming Up Roses’
‘Fine Line’
‘Italian Girls’
‘American Girls’
‘Keep Driving’
‘Ready, Steady, Go!’
‘Dance No More’
‘Treat People With Kindness’
‘Pop’
‘Season 2 Weight Loss’
‘Carla’s Song’
‘Aperture’
‘Little Freak’
‘Sign Of The Times’
‘As It Was’
The Together, Together, London residency continues at Wembley Stadium tonight, with further dates on June 17, 19, 20, 23, 26, 27, 29 and July 1, 3, and 4. Visit here for any remaining UK tickets and check out doors and stage times here.
The gigs will see Styles donate £1 from every ticket sold to LIVE’s levy to help protect UK grassroots music venues and support emerging talent, and before Styles’ headline performance, the big screens at the venue encouraged fans to support Music Venues Trust.
The tour is in support of the star’s latest album, ‘Kiss All The Time. Disco Occasionally’, which was released in March. In a four-star review, NME described it as “an album that you’ll really want to spend a lot of time with, letting all its layers envelope you”. It added: “It’s the most exploratory album of his career so far, trying out new things and steering his ship in new directions.”
Meanwhile, Styles has also curated this year’s Meltdown Festival at the Southbank Centre. The line-up chosen by the star includes Stephen Fretwell, Nilüfer Yanya, Orlando Weeks, Bar Italia, Dev Hynes, Jon Hopkins, Getdown Services, LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy, Soulwax and more, as well as an intimate gig from Styles himself.
The festival kicked off earlier this week (June 11) with a performance from Los Angeles’ Warpaint, whose show was their first in nearly two years. During the gig, they shared fan favourites like ‘Love Is To Die, ‘Billie Holiday’ and ‘Disco//Very’, plus a cover of Kate Bush’s ‘Running Up That Hill’.
