Amanda Holden released her first ever single, ‘Over The Rainbow’, on May 1, to help raise vital funds during the Covid-19 crisis, with all proceeds of the track being donated to NHS Charities Together. Today, Tuesday 5th May, the song is proudly sitting at #1 on the iTunes singles chart.
Like many of us in the UK, Amanda wanted to show her enduring support and gratitude to the NHS in some way:
“As everyone knows the NHS has been there for us as a family many times over the last decade. I owe them a lifetime debt.”
The idea of releasing Over the Rainbow fell into place a week ago when Amanda was speaking to her friends at Marks & Spencer, having already recorded the song last year. As a result, Amanda, who is a long-standing M&S Food Brand Ambassador, has joined M&S in its ‘All In This Together’ campaign. As part of the campaign, M&S has designed a special rainbow T-shirt in support of the NHS, with 100% of the profits also going to NHS Charities Together.
Amanda has used M&S’s T-shirt design, which can be spotted in the video, as her inspiration for the single artwork. With the rainbow being a strong symbol of hope to everyone, commonly appearing in windows across the country in support of the NHS, alongside the message of hope behind the lyrics, Over the Rainbow felt particularly apt to Amanda.
“The rainbow has become a symbol of hope for all of us. We are lucky to have such an incredible NHS in this country. Everybody wants to show their love and gratitude to them at this time. Once we reach the other side of this rainbow I hope the ray of love and appreciation continues to shine brightly on the NHS to ensure a better future for us all,” she says.
While Amanda’s charity single has hit the #1 spot on iTunes, the Britain’s Got Talent judge won’t rest on her laurels with four days to go until the weekly chart update – urging the great British public to keep downloading the song to raise as much money as possible for the NHS.
“It’s all happened very quickly as I was only having conversations with Marks & Spencer and my record label Virgin EMI last week to make all this happen. Every penny raised from this song will go to NHS Charities Together so every download will really help,” adds Amanda.
The official video is available to watch now and features Amanda recording in the studio with a 15-piece orchestra, interspersed with clips of members of the public clapping for the NHS. The video also includes very special guests including Captain Tom Moore with his daughter Hannah, as well as Alesha Dixon’s daughter, Azura, and Amanda’s own daughters, Hollie and Lexi.
All proceeds of the single will go to NHS Charities Together. Visit their official website. Stream and download ‘Over The Rainbow’ here.
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