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A post shared by MIKA (@mikainstagram) on Aug 24, 2020 at 3:35am PDT

The singer, who last year released his fifth studio album, My Name Is Michael Holbrook, billed the upcoming show as ‘a very special performance’, adding that there will be ‘some surprises’ for viewers. As well as organising the benefit concert, Mika has also set up a GoFundMe page, where anyone can make donations to aid the city’s recovery; the page has already collected over £18,300 since being created on August 20.

Mika is of Lebanese descent and was born in Beirut, where, on August 4, 178 people were killed and over 6,000 were injured in an explosion caused by 3,000 tonnes of illegally stored ammonium nitrate in the city’s port. The artist wrote: ‘Beirut has been through so much and the resilience and strength the Lebanese people is undeniable. It is the place of my birth, a part of me and will always be in my heart’. 

 

 

 

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#Beirut A post shared by MIKA (@mikainstagram) on Aug 9, 2020 at 4:01am PDT

The artist’s announcement of the I Love Beirut show follows a series of online activity related to the tragic incident in Lebanon. In another moving letter to its citizens, Mika expressed his grief and deepest sympathies, as well as criticising the country’s leadership. He remarked: ‘I cannot but think of these two explosions as a symbol of a system which is shattering’. 

The singer said that it was this leadership which steered Lebanon into ‘a series of misfortunes’, which he argues led to the recent disaster. He called out Hassan Diab, the country’s Prime Minister, after he said that those responsible for the explosion would be ‘held accountable’. To this, Mika responded: ‘Those responsible for whom? For what? Those responsible for 30 years of agony which have turned the land of cedars into the land of ashes’. The Port of Beirut, the epicentre of the blast, is indeed owned and overseen by the Lebanese government.

 

 

 

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If you would like to find out more information on the charities I have personally chosen to support, head to the linktree in my bio   A post shared by MIKA (@mikainstagram) on Aug 9, 2020 at 3:51am PDT

Fans from across the globe have left messages of support under Mika’s recent social media posts. One commented: ‘These words – your words – resonate with me, echoing in my ears. I’m terribly moved by the way you wrote all this. This is when you remind us that your pen is equalled only by your candour. This is the artist I love’.

The Lebanese Red Cross, one of the charities receiving support from Mika’s September show, has been working on the front lines in Beirut amid the recent catastrophe, its volunteers providing free life-saving disaster relief. Save the Children, a British charity also receiving revenue from the performance, has set up an emergency fund to aid Beirut’s children, thousands of whom are now homeless.

Tickets to Mika’s I Love Beirut benefit concert can be purchased for £10 each, all of which will be donated to the above charities.

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!!! BIG NEWS !!! This Wednesday I will be dropping ‘Smash Hits Vol. 1.5 – All Star Charity Remix Edition’. This brand new 12 TRACK remix album will be available for download via Bandcamp with 100% of all proceeds going to the Beirut relief fund. So basically this is an excuse to donate to an incredible cause and get a whole bunch of amazing tunes in the process – what could be better?! I’ve had an absolute ball putting this thing together – all the musicians involved have pulled through with 100% BANGERS and I could not be more proud of the finished result. Stay tuned tomorrow for the full track list and lineup – it’s actually so fucking good you aren’t bloody READY! Big love, lynks xxxx

A post shared by lynks (@lynksafrikka) on Aug 17, 2020 at 8:48am PDT

 You may not know who Lynks Afrikka is yet. His most streamed song on Spotify, How to be Successful, only has 74,779 plays. But it is clear Afrikka defines success in different terms.

23 year old Eliot Brett, the man behind the flamboyant make-up and costumes, says that creating Lynks Afrikka was all about making something ‘entertaining and interesting‘. This has certainly been achieved. Like Grayson Perry, Brett uses humour and bravado to comment astutely on society and politics. The last track of ‘Smash Hits, Vol.1‘, Pandemic, finishes with the words: ‘Boris Johnson likes big business// and if I catch him walking ’round Brixton// I’ll cut his fingers off right at the signet’. 

Although Lynks Afrikka may not have entirely hit the mainstream yet, he has already attracted the attention of publications like DIY, Loud and Quiet and NME. NME hailed his humorously titled EP ‘Smash Hits, Vol.1‘ as a ‘thumping success’, drawing attention to deadpan lines like the one describing straight clubs as ‘a lot like a pub but with slightly less chairs’. ‘Smash Hits, Vol 1.5 – All Star Charity Remix Addition‘, dropping today, will be a remix of these socially conscious dance tracks.

The release features remixes from exciting London musicians Happyness (who share a love for drag), PVA and Glows, to name a few. These musicians all have connections with Brixton’s The Windmill, a famed institution that has been fostering and showcasing new British talent since the early 2000s.

‘Smash Hits, Vol 1.5 – All Star Charity Remix Addition‘ is well worth purchasing, especially considering all proceeds go to such a worthwhile cause.

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We have contributed two remixes to this fantastic album out tomorrow via @lynksafrikka’s bandcamp – all proceeds go to the Beirut Disaster Relief Effort – you can pre order now via Lynk’s page