Lady Gaga and late night hosts like Jimmy Fallon had been teasing One World Together At Home for a few days before the unprecedented TV event aired on not one network, but multiple, with collaboration between late night rivals, Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel to boot. Sure, we’ve seen multiple networks air things like State of the Union addresses in unison before, but this was something different and something special.
Curated by Gaga, a slew of artists, from rockers like The Rolling Stones and Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong to pop culture phenoms like Taylor Swift and Lizzo all shared their own performances on the small screen. Peppered throughout these were interviews with doctors and other people on the front lines, as well as appearances from icons like Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey and more. The whole thing made for an event that combined online and primetime viewing, as a 6-hour pre-show streamed ahead of the actual TV event.
All in all, despite people being stuck at home, it was a satisfying night of television and you can see some of the great and fan-favorite performances below.
Eddie Vedder Performs “River Cross”
The Pearl Jam frontman does not do anything in half measures. While he’s simply playing and singing at the same time in his video, he is belting it out here. There were a lot of great performances and I could see how some people may have preferred Billie Joe Armstrong or Stevie Wonder, who played the late Bill Withers’ “Lean On Me,” but this one had my attention a little more. Eddie Vedder has an advantage though, given his incredibly distinct voice.
Celin Dion, Andrea Bocelli, Lady Gaga, Lang Lang And John Legend Perform “The Prayer”
Lady Gaga collaborated on her own performace with Celine Dion, Andrea Bocelli, John Legend and Lang Lang in a very impressive performance that just cracked my top 5 – though is worth watching for its sheer impressiveness. Lang Lang on the piano is highly entrancing, but I’m also a sucker for people who can play piano really well. Technically one of the greatest achievements of the night, for sure.
Keith Urban Performs “Higher Love”
Steve Winwood’s classic song “Higher Love” was a great song pick for the One World Together At Home event, but the reason this performance ranked so highly for me has nothing to do with the song choice or Keith Urban’s vocals. From an editing standpoint, Urban’s track was one of the most interesting to watch all night, as the video featured him performing different aspects of the song which were then mashed together into a really cool video. Watch it.
The Rolling Stones Perform “You Can’t Always Get What You Want”
Plenty of celebrities chose covers for the One World Together event, but if you are a classic band like The Rolling Stones, you already should have one song in your repertoire that fits the event. Like Elton John also did with his version of “I’m Still Standing,” The Rolling Stones played their classic “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” popping in when their parts started on the song. It’s a cool video to boot.
Camila Cabello & Shawn Mendes Perform “What A Wonderful World”
For me, this was the top moment of the night. Not only does it seemingly confirm Camila Cabeloo and Shawn Mendes are social isolating together, it’s clear they really worked out their version of “What A Wonderful World” and just sound great together. We know this already thanks to “Seniorita,” but this lovely cover will be sticking with me for days and days after the performance. In fact, I’ve already watched it multiple times.
Bonus: Taylor Swift Performs “Soon You’ll Get Better
This didn’t quite make my Top 5 for the night, but all you Swifties out there probably really enjoyed Taylor Swift’s sweet rendition of “Soon You’ll Get Better” and it's definitely worth a mention. Sidebar: The prettiest thing about this video isn’t even her voice but that to die for wallpaper or wall mural.
Ultimately, everyone who performed for the event was doing it with good intentions and each of the performances offered something for fans across the world, which is why global acts like Columbian singer Maluma and Nigerian singer Burna Boy were also included. The One World Together event brought a lot of people together on a Saturday night and should be one event we’ll remember for a long, long time – no matter which performances were your favorites.
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