A CHARITY SINGLE released to raise money for survivors of the Grenfell Tower block fire reached the top spot in the British charts today after selling more than 170,000 copies.
The track is a cover of Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ by 50 artists including Stormzy, Emeli Sande, Robbie Williams and Paloma Faith.
It was released one week after the fire in west London on Wednesday and had the biggest sales of any single this decade on its first day, selling 120,000 copies, the Official Charts Company said in a statement.
The single was the second-fastest selling one of the year, after Ed Sheeran’s Shape of You.
Seventy-nine people are presumed to have died in the blaze at Grenfell Tower, a council-owned apartment complex built in 1974 and refurbished last year.
The video for the single featured the aftermath of the blaze, including firefighters in tears as they left the building and horrified bystanders.
The song starts with an emotional rap by Stormzy, which includes the line:
I don’t know where to begin so I’ll start by saying I refuse to forget you/I refuse to be silenced/I refuse to neglect you.
Proceeds from sales of the song and extra donations will go to Artists for Grenfell, which was set up to support survivors and victims’ families.
The song was organised by music mogul Simon Cowell.
Also today, the English Football Association said that around £1.25 million (€1.4 million) in proceeds expected from the Community Shield game in August between Chelsea and Arsenal would go to survivors of the fire.
“Two great London clubs will come together to play at the city’s most famous stadium just a few miles from Kensington,” FA chairman Greg Clarke said in a statement.
“They will be united in their passion for football, grief at this tragic loss and support for their community,” he said.
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