Last night some of the world’s biggest stars came together in spectacular fashion in order to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the William J. Clinton Foundation, a charity set up by former President Bill Clinton which aims to help a variety of causes, including treating aids and malaria and fighting childhood obesity.
In attendance were stars such as Stevie Wonder and Bono who both sang for the crowd, whilst comedian Ben Stiller played a pre-recorded video shot at the Clinton Foundation’s offices. The video showed Stiller leading a collection of celebrity political activists including Matt Damon and Sean Penn in an ideas session as Kevin Spacey impersonated Bill Clinton. Comedy was also unintentionally provided by Usher who noticeably split his trousers mid-way through his performance.
It was Lady Gaga who stole the night though, arriving on stage in a blonde wig and announcing “Bill, I’m having my first real Marilyn moment” before wishing him a belated happy birthday. After performing ‘Edge of Love’ and ‘Born this Way’, the singer launched into a personalised version of ‘Bad Romance’ – changing the words to ‘Bill Romance’. At one point she approached the former President, his wife, and daughter Chelsea, encouraging them to dance with her.
It wasn’t just Bill that Gaga had her eye on though as she dedicated ‘You&I’ to Hilary Clinton.
However fun the concert was, the underlying message was always prominent, with tributes to Clinton’s work throughout the event. Laura Ling, a journalist who had been imprisoned in North Korea until her release was negotiated by Bill Clinton in 2009 poignantly told the crowd “President Clinton didn’t just save my life. Every day he is saving lives around the world. He has truly made a measurable and indelible impact on our world.”
