Corinne Bailey Rae

‘People need to be made more aware of the vital job that Cord is doing in some of the most difficult places with those who have had to flee from war and violence, often losing everything; their families, their homes and their belongings,’ said Corinne.

‘Many are young people, a large number are orphans, and Cord helps them to get back on their feet, to build a new life, which is why I want to lend them my support in any way I can,’ she added.

Corinne’s place in the music industry’s hall of fame was assured when her debut album sold 2.5million copies and soared into the US Billboard charts at No17- the highest ever for a UK debut artist. The album is now multi-platinum achieving worldwide sales of 4 million and counting.

Corinne has also received many awards and been nominated for four Grammy and three Brits awards, counting amongst her fans Stevie Wonder, Prince, Arctic Monkeys, Mary J Blige and Kaiser Chiefs.

Corinne continues to promote Cord internationally, and has endorsed our peace building strategy in a series of high profile concert appearances that drew global audiences.

After headlining the Peace One Day concert at the Royal Albert Hall,Corinne starred at the Together for Peace Festival in Leeds, before heading for Johannesburg and the Nelson Mandela 46664 Concert held on December 1, World AIDS Day.

Corinne was invited by Mandela to perform at the Ellis Park stadium alongside international artists including Annie Lennox, Peter Gabriel and Razorlight to highlight the continuing pandemic. The annual concert is named after Mandela’s former prison number, and Corinne will now use her opportunity as one of his 46664 ambassadors to also promote Cord’s work in the HIV field.

‘I felt very honoured to be invited to perform by Nelson Mandela,’ said Corinne. ‘He is someone I have admired since I was a child. His application of forgiveness and justice are an example to the world, and I hope the concert went a long way to raising awareness about HIV and AIDS.’