Announcing their newest episode on Instagram, the iconic band wrote: “Queen: 1976 Somebody To Love – Freddie’s Greatest Hit? ‘Freddie came in very well prepared with a lot of vocal parts and we just worked our way through it. Yes, there was a very good feeling. I always remember thinking’ yeah, this is going to be something great.” @brianmayforreal.This week we celebrate what is undoubtedly one of Queen’s greatest hits, the @freddiemercury & gospel inspired masterpiece, Somebody To Love. .”

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Examining their “Gospel inspired masterpiece” ‘Somebody To Love,’ the five minute episode explores Freddie Mercury’s inspiration behind the song and how they released it as an attempt to try new things after their successful album release ‘A Night At The Opera.’ A clip of Mercury speaking of the track is featured in the episode, he said: “I mean we had the same three people singing on the big choir sections but I think it had a different kind of technical approach, there was this sort of Gospel way of singing which, I think, is different to us…I just wanted to write something in that kind of thing. I was sort of incentivised by the gospel approach that she had on her albums, the earlier albums.”

The archival footage used in the episode features the band in the height of their rise to fame during the 1970s. We also hear from Queen guitarist Brian May, as he too describes the Gospel-inspired nature of ‘Somebody To Love,’ a musical influence the band had grown to love after their successful hit ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’ He said: “Freddie wanted to be Aretha Franklin, you have to bear this in mind, and that explains everything. He loved Aretha. And, this was his Gospel epic. It kind of followed in the steps of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ in the sense that we were building up these multiple vocal parts, but this time we were being a Gospel choir, instead of being an English choir.”

In a statement accompanying the episodes release, Queen wrote: “After the incredible success of A Night At The Opera and Bohemian Rhapsody, all eyes were on Queen to see what they would do next. As Freddie Mercury worked on his next composition, inspiration came from one of the world’s finest singers and ended up with him, Brian and Roger becoming a Gospel choir. Was it better than Bohemian Rhapsody? The man himself thinks it might be…”

Queen made headlines earlier this week after their track ‘Another One Bites The Dust’ reached one billion streams on Spotify. The song was the longest-running top ten single of 1980, and over 40 years later, it is evidently still a cult favourite.  

You can watch the latest episode of ‘The Greatest’ – ‘Somebody To Love – Freddie’s Greatest Hit?’ now on YouTube. 

The moving video, which came out on Friday 17th April, shows clips of medical staff and other key workers around the world working to save lives, as well as the state of the world at the moment. Alongside this, Blunt is shown singing to the camera with the sun setting in the background. His message offers a melancholy sense of hope and unity during this difficult time.

Directed by Jacob Wise and released via Atlantic Records, all profits from ‘The Greatest’ will be donated to the NHS. The singer explained “I originally wrote ‘The Greatest’ for my children as a message of hope for their future, amidst the mad world that we live in,” continuing, “But in the last few weeks the song for me has taken on new meaning, as I watch NHS workers, first responders and healthcare professionals worldwide battling the coronavirus. These people are our true heroes – they are the greatest, and we all must show them the gratitude that they truly deserve.”

In an interview with Good Morning Britain, Blunt discussed his personal experience with not being able to see his father who is highly at risk. After having a kidney transplant in January, Blunt’s father has been immuno suppressed, making it impossible for him to be with family at this time.

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The NHS just gave my father a new life, so UK profits from the single in 2020 will be donated to the @nhswebsite. Thank you to all our carers.

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‘Once Upon A Mind’ is James Blunt’s latest album containing singles ‘The Truth’ and ‘Cold’, which were praised by both fans and critics. ‘The Greatest’ has almost 2 million streams on Spotify, while the music video has over 500,000.

The singer-songwriter has always been known to offer help where he can, taking part in charities and causes such as Help for Heroes and Stand Up To Cancer. Make sure to purchase the song to continue supporting the NHS.

James Blunt released his debut album ‘Back To Bedlam’ in 2004 which sold 11 million copies worldwide and reached number 1 in the UK Albums Chart and number 2 in the US. He writes and produces his music, receiving five Grammy nominations including Song of the Year, and winning two Brit Awards for Male Solo Artist and British Pop Act. He previously served as a reconnaissance officer in the Life Guards (a cavalry regiment of the British Army).

The Chandelier and Elastic Heart singer dropped the single unexpectedly, with Kendrick Lamar singing the verse “I transform with pressure, I’m hands-on with effort/ I fell twice before, my bounce back was special/ Letdowns will get you and the critics will test you/ But the strongest survive another scar may bless you.”

The video has a dance sequence featuring the pop star’s friend Maddie Ziegler. Although the video does not feature Lamar’s verse, that version of the song can be streamed via Spotify. Sia released her most recent album This is Acting in January. Back in July, Sia reached her first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit featuring Sean Paul, with Cheap Thrills.

Directed by Sia and Daniel Askill, the video opens with shots of a distressed Ziegler, who wipes paint down her face, in the colours of the rainbow – a symbol for the Gay Pride movement. She is with a troupe of kids, who seem to be locked behind bars. Ziegler and 49 other dancers stand in for those who were killed the night of the Orlando shooting, using a range of expressive hand and facial gestures.

The song and video are a tribute to the victims of the Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando that took the lives of 49 members of the LGBT community. As The Greatest starts playing, Ziegler frees the kids and leads them on a choreographed run throughout the house.

Watch the video (which doesn’t feature Kendrick Lamar) below.