In December 2004, some of the music industry's most illustrious artists joined up with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra at London's Royal Albert Hall for a special concert to raise funds for the victims of the conflict in Darfur.

Now, EMI has released the DVD of the concert, the proceeds of which will also go to support the UN refugee agency's work in Darfur and Chad. The DVD features additional exclusive songs by Sade, David Gray and Franz Ferdinand, as well as backstage footage from the concert, and is already attracting some high praise from music critics (see Reviews).

"...an incredibly worthy purchase... excellent performances from a stellar cast..." – Musicweek

After its initial release in the U.K., the "Voices for Darfur" DVD is now being rolled out across the planet over the next few weeks. It features all the artists who took part in the concert, including Yusuf Islam, Chrissie Hynde, Mick Hucknall, Nicole Russo of the Brand New Heavies, Moloko singer Roisin Murphy, Ruthie Henshall, Sir Willard White, Alison Moyet and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, Barbara Hendricks.

Sade wrote and recorded her first new track in four years, "Mum", especially for the DVD, accompanied by images from Darfur. David Gray, who had to pull out of the concert due to voice problems, recorded "Ain't No Love" for the DVD. British band Franz Ferdinand was also unable to attend the concert but provided a song for the evening, and donated half of their Mercury Music prize money. Coldplay also contributed generously.

The conflict in the Darfur region of western Sudan, which began in early 2003, has now displaced close to 2 million people within Darfur and driven more than 200,000 into neighbouring Chad, where UNHCR has set up 12 camps to care for the refugees.