Ariana Grande has vowed to return to “the incredibly brave city of Manchester” to perform a benefit concert in honour of those killed in Monday night’s terrorist attack.
She shared her plans in an open letter posted on her social media pages on Friday night.
The pop singer, who left the Manchester Arena stage moments before the suicide bomber attacked, told her fans: “Our response to this violence must be to come closer together, to help each other, to love more, to sing louder and to live more kindly and generously than we did before.
“I’ll be returning to the incredibly brave city of Manchester to spend time with my fans and to have a benefit concert in honour of and to raise money for the victims and their families.”
Indicating that she may not be the only artist performing at the gig, she added: “I want to thank my fellow musicians and friends for reaching out to be a part of our expression of love for Manchester.
“I will have details to share with you as soon as everything is confirmed.”
The 23-year-old’s words come after she has faced days of criticism for not visiting those injured who are recovering in hospital after surviving this week’s deadly attack.
She opened her letter by saying: “My heart, prayers and deepest condolences are with the victims of the Manchester Attack and their loved ones.
“There is nothing I or anyone can do to take away the pain you are feeling or to make this better.
“However, I extend my hand and heart and everything I possibly can give to you and yours, should you want or need my help in any way.”
The superstar then urged her fans to “choose how we let this affect us and how we live our lives from here on out.”
Ariana wrote: “I have been thinking of my fans, and of you all, non stop over the past week.
“The way you have handled all of this has been more inspiring and made me more proud than you’ll ever know.
“The compassion, kindness, love, strength and oneness that you’ve shown one another this past week is the exact opposite of the heinous intentions it must take to pull off something as evil as what happened Monday.
‘YOU are the opposite.”
Grande added: “We will never be able to understand why events like this take place because it is not in our nature, which is why we shouldn’t recoil.
“We will not quit or operate in fear. We won’t let this divide us. We won’t let hate win.”
She also paid tribute to the diverse audiences she plays to around the world.
Grande wrote: “When you look into the audience at my shows, you see a beautiful, diverse, pure, happy crowd.
“Thousands of people, incredibly different, all there for the same reason, music.”
Grande went on to say: “We will continue in honor of the ones we lost, their loved ones, my fans and all affected by this tragedy.
“They will be on my mind and in my heart everyday and I will think of them with everything I do for the rest of my life.”
She signed off, simply, “Ari.”
Read the letter in full here:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BUkJoiDFvru/?taken-by=arianagrande