Beverley Knight lends voice to NHS campaign song

Performers from across the UK have joined together (virtually) with Beverley Knight and Dr Ranj Singh to lead a viral campaign showing support to the NHS and its volunteers.

The singers, musicians, producers, gospel and community choirs, and video editors from across the UK have come together remotely to record a cover of ‘Lean On Me’ by the late Bill Withers. The single will soon be available to stream and download across the usual streaming platforms.

The idea first came together via brothers Dominic and Alexander Lyon from Young Guns Entertainment, who conceived the idea and brought together friends in the industry to coordinate and produce the song and video.

Singer Beverley Knight, known for her hit singles “Greatest Day”, “Get Up!”, “Shoulda Woulda Coulda” and “Come as You Are” has become an ambassador, bringing on board Joss Stone to lend her vocals to the track, and first became involved due to her strong NHS connections. Beverley’s mother used to be a nurse, her sister works for the 111 Emergency helpline, and her brother has recently battled and recovered from COVID-19.

I was asked to come on board by Dom and Al who I had worked with previously and as someone who has at least a third of my entire family working for the NHS, I didn’t only feel compelled, I felt that it was an absolute obligation to get onboard and to try to help others as much as I can.

Beverley Knight on joining NHS Relief as ambassador

NHS Relief have also recruited doctor, television presenter, author and columnist – DR Ranj Singh – who has joined to lend his weight and support from the perspective of a member working with the NHS on the frontline.

The NHS is a big part of my life and I know how important it is and how important it is right now. Anything we can do to boost morale and make people on the frontline feel more appreciated is vital, because they’re doing an incredible job for all of us. This is a really lovely thing to do for them in return.

Dj Ranj Singh on the NHS Relief single

The single has been recorded across 30 studios by producer Ben Mitchell (Sugarhill Gang, Beverley Knight) and Billie Godfrey (Heaven 17), with other 100 voices, all in isolation, and is the first time a track and video has been coordinated using remote studios on this kind of global scale.

The song also features vocals from Stephen Bowman from Blake – who suffered severely from COVID-19 for three weeks – but emerged just in time to perform on the track.

You can find out more about the single and the people involved in producing it here – https://www.nhsreliefproject.org/ and you can make a donation here – https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/Team/NHSRelief

Watch the video for the single below: