Award-winning Scottish group Young Fathers made their headline debut for the annual Teenage Cancer Trust concert series at the Royal Albert Hall last night, with a sensational performance to a sold out crowd. They were joined by surprise special guest, Murkage Dave.
Show host Laura Whitmore welcomed the crowds to the show with a timely message: “In the past hour, it’s become even more significant with the Princess of Wales announcing she has cancer. It’s something that no matter who you are, you’ll either be affected yourself or you’ll know someone who’s been affected. For us here at the Teenage Cancer Trust, seven young people today will have been told the words “You have cancer”.
She added, “Every young person facing cancer feels scared, not just for them but for their families as well. They don't just need support, they need age appropriate support, specialist care and support from nurses and youth workers. And the Teenage Cancer Trust is the only place doing this for this group of people. It knows what it takes for young people.”
Then came a night of exceptional music! With a defiant blend of pop and R&B, East End native Murkage Dave brought his observational storytelling to the Royal Albert Hall for the first time, paired with a boombox and a mic. He opened with ‘Car Bomb’ taken from his phenomenal debut Murkage Dave Changed My Life. Moving on to ‘King of First World Problems’ and ‘Entertainment’, Murkage Dave spoke to the Royal Albert Hall crowd: “Wow this place is posh… I don’t want to say too much about cancer right now but it’s a wicked disease and I want to big up Teenage Cancer Trust right now for what they’re doing to help.”
Then came headliners Young Fathers. The Mercury Prize winning trio are onto something special. They can now add selling out the Royal Albert Hall to their growling list of achievements, and playing here for the first time for Teenage Cancer Trust. During the non stop thundering set, they were joined on stage by a 40 strong all female choir, Nia Choir. Tonight Young Fathers showcased their categorically-evasive hybrid sound in the historic venue, drawing the energetic sold out audience into a night full of movement and powerful vocals. They opened with the acapella track ‘Freefalling’, swiftly followed by ‘Queen is Dead’ before launching into ‘Get Up’ and ‘Wow’.
Highlights from the set included ‘Shame’ from their acclaimed second album White Men Are Black Men Too, plus multiple Heavy Heavy moments. Widely regarded as one of the best albums of 2023, including reaching No. 2 in the UK albums chart, songs like ‘I Saw’ and ‘Rice’ created a palpable energy in the room.
As they got further into the set, Graham Hastings spoke to the sold out Royal Albert Hall crowd, “We are Young Fathers. We wanna say thank you to Teenage Cancer Trust for having us.”
Last night’s show was part of a momentous week, celebrating the work of rock legend Roger Daltrey, founder and curator of the Teenage Cancer Trust gigs, as he bows out as the driving force of these very special concerts.
The Who singer, who will continue as a Teenage Cancer Trust Honorary Patron, has tirelessly fundraised and advocated for the charity for nearly a quarter of a century. A key part of this has been Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall, the now iconic, annual concert series taking place at one of the world’s most prestigious concert venues.
Tonight (Saturday 23 March) electronic music’s most iconic duo Chemical Brothers headline the Royal Albert Hall for Teenage Cancer Trust. Chemical Brothers’ live shows are amongst the best in the business - their first performance for Teenage Cancer Trust will be an unforgettable experience.
The music continues for the rest of the weekend, courtesy of some of the biggest names around… Closing the week is ‘Ovation - A Celebration of 24 Years of Gigs For Teenage Cancer Trust’ on Sunday 24 March, a show featuring Roger Daltrey’s friends and fans, many of those who helped establish these gigs as a celebrated annual event: Roger himself, with Kelly Jones, Robert Plant with Saving Grace, Eddie Vedder and Paul Weller.
For 22 editions, Roger Daltrey has persuaded some of the greatest artists on the planet to perform unique, one night only gigs to raise money for Teenage Cancer Trust, generating over £32 million from ticket sales alone and spreading word of this extraordinary charity far and wide. That money is enough to pay for over a million hours of specialist care from Teenage Cancer Trust nurses, or 13 Teenage Cancer Trust hospital units. In 2000, when the gigs began, Teenage Cancer Trust was a much smaller organisation with only 5 hospital units across the whole of the UK and far fewer nurses and youth support workers.
Teenage Cancer Trust is the only UK charity dedicated to providing specialised nursing care and support for young people with cancer. Since 2000, over £32 million has been raised by Teenage Cancer Trust concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, and that money has helped fund specialist nurses, hospital units and support services right across the UK that help get young people through some unimaginably hard times.
Roger Daltrey CBE, Teenage Cancer Trust Honorary Patron, and mastermind behind the gigs for 24 years, said:
“The generosity of the people who work in the music and comedy industries never ceases to amaze me. In this, our 21st year, after two years of artists having no shows at all, at a time where the only certain paydays are from live performances, artists are willing to give up their earnings from a London show. It shows us that miracles are everywhere, but if you cough or sneeze you'd miss them!”
2024 Show Dates:
Mon 18 March - The Who with Orchestra, with special guests Squeeze
Tue 19 March - A Night Of Comedy - Kevin Bridges (host), Rob Beckett, Paul Chowdhry, Joe Lycett, Joanne McNally, Seann Walsh
Weds 20 March - The Who with Orchestra, with special guests Squeeze
Thurs 21 March - Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, with special guests Blossoms
Fri 22 March - Young Fathers plus special guests
Sat 23 March - The Chemical Brothers
Sun 24 March - ‘Ovation’ - A Celebration of 24 Years of Gigs For Teenage Cancer Trust with: Roger Daltrey, Kelly Jones, Robert Plant with Saving Grace, Eddie Vedder, Paul Weller
