Prince Harry attends concert without Meghan Markle in first appearance since Prince Philip’s funeral

The Duke of Sussex made a solo appearance at Global Citizen’s Vax Live concert on Sunday, despite the Duchess of Sussex being advertised to appear alongside him, she was not in attendance.

Prince Harry spoke for three minutes on stage about the importance of making vaccinations borderless. He was greeted by the thousands-strong crowd at LA’s So-Fi Stadium with a standing ovation.

He made no mention of his wife nor family, who moved to Los Angeles in 2020. Meghan is pregnant with their second child and is due to give birth to their first daughter later this year.

“We are at a defining moment in the global fight against COVID-19,” said Harry, “tonight is a celebration of each of you here.”

Speaking to the frontline workers in attendance, he continued: “You spent the last year battling courageously and selflessly to protect us all, and you served and sacrificed yourselves with bravery.

The vaccine must be distributed to everyone everywhere, we cannot rest or truly recover until there is fair distribution to every corner of the world.”

Harry added: “The virus does not respect borders, access cannot be determined by geography. It must be a basic right for all. We must look beyond ourselves with empathy and compassion for those we know and those we don’t. What we do in this moment will stand in history.”

The event, dubbed ‘the concert to reunite the world’, was hosted by Selena Gomez, and featured performances by Jennifer Lopez, Foo Fighters and H.E.R. among other chart-toppers.

President Biden, First Lady Dr Jill Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will make a special appearance as part of Global Citizen’s partnership with the White House’s ‘We Can Do This’ initiative to increase public confidence in COVID-19 vaccines while reinforcing basic prevention measures, such as mask-wearing and social distancing.

As the first large-scale music event for a COVID-compliant audience composed of fully vaccinated frontline healthcare and essential workers, Vax Live calls for new commitments from governments, the private sector, and philanthropists toward the equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines worldwide.

On Global Citizen’s official website, it states that the mission of the concert is to celebrate “the hope that COVID-19 vaccines are offering families and communities around the world. We are calling on world leaders to step up to make sure vaccines are accessible for all so we can end the pandemic for everyone, everywhere.”

Vax Live will air in the U.K. on Global Citizen’s YouTube on 9 May at 1am, and air on ABC, CBS, FOX, YouTube and iHeartMedia broadcast radio stations in the US on 8 May at 8/7c.