On May 22, once the Ariana Grande concert ended at Manchester Arena, a suicide bomber detonated a bomb outside of one of the exits as fans were making their way out of the venue; the bomb killed 22 adults and children, and injured 119 others. As expected, Grande was very upset about the attack and how it affected her fans, so much so that many felt as if it would be a long time until Grande would return to the stage.

Because of this, it came as a surprise that Grande announced she would be having a benefit concert for the victims on June 4, not even two weeks after the attack. The benefit concert took place in Manchester at Old Trafford Cricket Ground. The concert sold out in six minutes as tickets were bought by both fans who attended the concert on May 22, and new fans as well.

Special guest performers at the benefit included Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry, and Coldplay. A day before the concert, another terrorist attack occurred in London, but the concert still went on as it made a statement to the terrorists, showing them that their actions would not be able to ruin other people’s happiness. At the concert, as each artist took the stage, they praised the people of Manchester for being so brave and for spreading positivity during such a dark time.

During the concert, Grande wore a “One Love Manchester” sweatshirt, performing both alone and with other artists. One instance is when she sang “Where is the Love?” with the Black Eyed Peas, an appropriate song due to recent events around the world. Throughout the concert, Grande stayed strong, but the events that occurred the night of May 22 were always in the back of her mind, causing her to break down at times; this moved the audience to tears.

Although she appeared to be sad at times, nothing but love and positivity radiated off of Grande as she addressed the crowd, saying, “I want to thank you so much for coming together and being so loving and strong. I love you guys so much and I think that the kind of love and unity that you’re displaying is the medicine the world really needs right now.”

As a result of the benefit concert, Ariana Grande and all who were involved were able to raise over $13 million for the victims of the attack.