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Pakistan’s first Grammy winner Arooj Aftab joined a star studded lineup of musicians on Help(2), a charity album aiming to raise money and awareness for children suffering under armed conflict.

Produced by War Child Records — the music arm of UK-based charity War Child — the album released on Friday on YouTube, Spotify, iTunes, Deezer and Amazon Music. It is also available for purchase on Bandcamp and CDs and vinyls can be purchased on the charity’s website.

Help(2) has 23 tracks and a special bonus recording donated by Oasis of their performance of ‘Acquiesce’ from last year. The album’s first track, ‘Opening Night’ is the first track from the Arctic Monkeys after an almost four-year hiatus following their 2022 release The Car.

Aftab partnered with eight-time Grammy recipient Beck Hanson for a cover of the 1950 Broadway number ‘Lilac Wine’. Hanson lent his vocals to the song and produced and mixed the recording.

Other notable performers include Olivia Rodrigo with her song ‘Book of Love’, King Krule with ‘The 343 Loop’ and the late Sinead O’Connor who wrote the song ‘Black Boys on Mopeds’.

Academy Award winner Jonathan Glazer is the album’s creative director. In an Instagram post from War Child, he is credited with giving cameras to children in Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan and Yemen to film their worlds through their own eyes as part of the album’s release material.

Some videos from War Child Records’ studios of artists recording their songs for the album were also filmed by children. These clips have been uploaded on their YouTube channel.

Help(2) takes its inspiration from Help, the 1995 charity album from War Child, which featured some of the most popular British musicians of the time, including Paul McCartney, Radiohead and Massive Attack. O’Connor and Oasis performed on the album as well, with the band joined by Kate Moss and Johnny Depp for their song ‘Fade Away’.