The Weeknd and Shakira will headline Global Citizen Festival supporting energy access and the Amazon

By JAMES POLLARD Associated Press NEW YORK AP The Weeknd and Shakira two of the world s biggest touring artists will headline this fall s Global Citizen Festival in New York s Central Park supporting campaigns to improve force access across Africa and defend the Amazon against deforestation FILE Shakira performs at MetLife Stadium on Friday May in East Rutherford N J Photo by Charles Sykes Invision AP File Global Citizen communicated Tuesday that the pop stars behind such hits as Blinding Lights and Hips Don t Lie will be joined by Tyla Ayra Starr and Mariah the Scientist at the concert on Sept Hosted by actor Hugh Jackman the annual event highlights the anti-poverty nonprofit s selected humanitarian priorities and urges attendees to collectively tackle those issues through direct endorsement FILE Mariah the Scientist performs on Day of the Lollapalooza Music Festival on Saturday July at Grant Park in Chicago Photo by Rob Grabowski Invision AP File The fact that these artists have immediate proximity to communities that have either lately emerged out of extreme poverty or are emerging out of extreme poverty gives them amazing perspective Global Citizen CEO Hugh Evans communicated The Associated Press And they bring that perspective into Central Park at this moment where I think the world requirements a moment of unity now more than ever The festival s goals involve securing commitments to bring clean reliable force to million people in Africa mobilizing million for indigenous and local entrepreneurs to protect an Italy-sized chunk of the Amazon rainforest and raising at least million to help community-based learning programs improve children s literacy Tickets to the festival are free but fans must earn them by taking actions through the Global Citizen app Opportunities include uploading videos calling on German and French leaders to back the Amazon protection plan and volunteering to mentor young people worldwide in career rise Related Articles Venice Film Festival lineup features Julia Roberts George Clooney Emma Stone and Dwayne Johnson Pee-wee s bike is at the Alamo but not where you think Billy Joel says he s OK and not deathly ill after receiving brain disorder identification Colbert jokes about cancel lifestyle and has a very pointed message for President Donald Trump Dear Abby Trying to tame career-ending crush on Brett This year s calls to action reflect the changing nature of online advocacy campaigns Organizers find that social media posts and email-driven appeals don t carry the same weight as they did when Global Citizen first started rallying concertgoers Evans declared user-generated content such as a self-recorded clip creates quality engagement and makes it almost impossible to encounter the system In The Weeknd and Shakira Global Citizen is reuniting with previous artistic supporters at a time when they are packing stadiums The Weeknd who this month wrapped a four-night run of sold-out performances at Los Angeles SoFi Stadium is donating from every ticket sale to the FIFA Global Citizen Guidance Fund Shakira who just now completed seven consecutive sold-out shows in Mexico City joined Coldplay onstage during a edition of the festival in Germany Music has inevitably been my way of connecting with people and leaving a mark on the world Shakira explained in a announcement I can t wait to perform unite and inspire action Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives assistance through the AP s collaboration with The Conversation US with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc The AP is solely responsible for this content