Last fall, Abbey Road Studios hosted an unusual convergence of artists working toward a shared purpose. Over several days in late November 2025, musicians from across generations gathered to record HELP(2), a compilation album benefiting War Child UK. The project, set for release on March 6, features new songs and covers from Arctic Monkeys, Olivia Rodrigo, Damon Albarn, Sampha, Wet Leg, Arlo Parks, Big Thief, Depeche Mode, and others.
The album was organized by War Child UK’s head of music, Rich Clarke, who described the sessions as both collaborative and informal. Artists rotated in and out of the studio across three days, often overlapping in ways rarely seen in modern recording schedules. Members of Pulp, Fontaines D.C., Blur affiliates, and solo artists worked alongside one another without rigid separation, contributing to what Clarke characterized as a collective effort rather than a series of isolated sessions.
War Child UK was founded in the early 1990s to support children affected by armed conflict, providing emergency aid as well as long-term mental health and educational services. Music has long been central to the organization’s fundraising strategy. Its 1995 release, The Help Album, which featured artists including Blur, Radiohead, Oasis, and Portishead, helped significantly expand the charity’s operations.
Plans for a second installment began to take shape following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, amid growing concern within the music community about escalating global conflicts. Clarke said the urgency increased as crises unfolded in Gaza, Sudan, and elsewhere. According to War Child, an estimated 15 million children in Sudan alone currently require humanitarian assistance.
Producer James Ford joined the project in late 2024 and quickly became a key figure in its development. Arctic Monkeys followed soon after. The band’s contribution, “Opening Night,” marks their first new release since 2022. The song originated from an unfinished idea that frontman Alex Turner had revisited periodically over more than a decade. During the Abbey Road sessions, the band completed the track, shaping it in line with the more measured style of their recent albums rather than their early work.
Arctic Monkeys’ involvement continues a longstanding relationship with War Child. In 2018, the band donated proceeds from a Royal Albert Hall performance to the organization, later releasing a live album that further contributed to its funding.
Other participants reflected similar continuity. Pulp, who donated their Mercury Prize winnings to War Child in 1996, returned with a new song. Damon Albarn collaborated with Fontaines D.C.’s Grian Chatten and poet-rapper Kae Tempest on “Flags,” which expanded into a group recording featuring Johnny Marr, Adrian Utley of Portishead, Dave Okumu, and backing vocals from several artists present that day. Albarn later said the focus remained on making a strong record rather than emphasizing its charitable context.
Filmmaker Jonathan Glazer contributed by sending a group of school-aged children to document the sessions using handheld cameras. Clarke said the presence of children altered the dynamic in the studio, reinforcing the purpose of the project and easing the intensity of the recording environment.
James Ford, who was undergoing leukemia treatment during the sessions, was unable to attend in person but remained actively involved remotely. On the final day, Olivia Rodrigo recorded a cover of the Magnetic Fields’ “The Book of Love,” with Ford directing the session via video link from the hospital. Graham Coxon joined on acoustic guitar.
Clarke said hearing Arctic Monkeys’ completed track later that month underscored the significance of the project. All proceeds and publishing rights from HELP(2) will support War Child’s programs indefinitely, rather than serving as a one-time benefit.
“The music is what lasts,” Clarke said. “If these songs continue to be heard, the support for children affected by conflict continues with them.”
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