At Ariana Grande's One Love Manchester concert, there was one overarching theme: Love is more powerful than hate. The June 4 event showed much unity and respect for those who were affected by the terrorist attack at Grande's May 22 concert in Manchester. Further emphasizing that theme was Katy Perry's message to "choose love" at One Love Manchester concert on Sunday. Perry walked onto the stage as cheers and applause erupted as her name was displayed on the concert screen.
She thanked the crowd and Grande for having her at the event, before relaying her own message of love. "It's not easy to always choose love, is it? Especially in moments like these, it can be the most difficult thing to do," Perry told the audience. "But love conquers fear and love conquers hate. And this love that you choose, will give you strength and it's our greatest power."
Then, the singer instructed the audience — both at the concert and at home — to touch the person next to them and "make human contact." "Look in their eyes and tell them you love love," Perry instructed everyone. "I encourage you to choose love, even when it's difficult."
You can watch the speech below:
After that heartwarming exercise, Perry sang a stripped-down acoustic version of her hit song "Part of Me" and a rousing rendition of her hit song "Roar."
The One Love Manchester concert emphasized love throughout the event, which featured artists like Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, and Pharrell expressing their appreciation for the city and relaying the message that we must choose love over hate in times like these.
All of this only made Perry's own remarks and exercise even more poignant, in that we must not just love, but express love for each other — especially right now.
