The 24-piece orchestra, conducted by Peter Edwards, will reflect on our current times through the lens of Marvin Gaye’s incredible catalogue.

‘What’s Going On’ was recorded and released in 1971 and Gaye’s masterpiece gave voice to a generation, as it reflected on the violence and turmoil of America with laser-sharp precision. Widely recognised as one of the most important albums of all time, 50 years later ‘What’s Going On’ continues to resonate with the inequality, struggle and uncertainty of the modern day. 

Acclaimed British soul singer Noel McKoy will join the tour on lead vocals as the voice of Marvin Gaye himself, he said

“Since the time of the release of the album to the present day, every time I’ve heard or sung it I think to myself that mothers are actually still crying –  ever more so, and young brothers are still dying.  The tracks from this album were and still are the benchmark of soulful commentary from a black man’s experience which can be related to across the globe. Its spirit and honesty remain potent to this very day”.

The evening will begin with a performance of Marvin Gaye’s seminal film score ‘Trouble Man’ with the orchestral performance being accompanied by a specially commissioned narrative written by the actor Colin Salmon, delivered by a different spoken a word artist at each event (featuring AFLO The Poet, Casey Bailey, Malik Al Nasir, Saili Katebe with Colin Salmon taking the stage at the London performance), as well as immersive visual projections by Yeast Culture.