After months of speculation over which artists had accepted to play at King Charles’ upcoming coronation, the official lineup has been revealed, with Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, Take That, and Andrea Bocelli accepting the offer. According to Rolling Stone, they’ll be accompanied by “bass-baritone Sir Bryn Terfel, singer Freya Ridings, and composer-producer Alexis Ffrench.”
The event will take place on May 7 at Windsor Castle in England. It will be broadcast on BBC One, BBC iPlayer, BBC Radio 2, and BBC Sounds, and it’s described as something that “will celebrate a new chapter in the nation’s history, with themes of love, respect and optimism, celebrating the four nations, their communities and the Commonwealth.”
“I am excited to be performing at the Coronation Concert, and helping to shine a further light on the British Asian Trust’s Children’s Protection Fund, whose work includes on-ground initiatives to fundraising, with the aim to find solutions to child trafficking,” Perry said in a statement.
“To share the stage with the other performers at the coronation concert is a once-in-a-lifetime event and it will be an honor and a celebration,” Richie added.
According to a past article from the publication, a number of large artists had turned down playing Charles’ coronation, including Adele, Harry Styles, and Elton John, the latter of which cited scheduling issues. (However, John had also been a close friend of the late Princess Diana.)
“The royal family has faced a number of PR disasters in recent times, and anyone performing at the show would have to consider whether there would be a backlash from appearing amongst their fans,” Simon Jones, a publicist, explained to them why many wouldn’t appear.