Global Citizen festival: Ed Sheeran, Billie EIlish and Lizzo join charity concerts

Some of the world's biggest music stars are taking part in a huge 24-hour concert to raise awareness of climate change, vaccine inequality and famine.

More than 60 artists, including Ed Sheeran, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Camila Cabello, Shawn Mendes and BTS are taking part in the The Global Citizen festival.

Tens of thousands of people are expected to attend the live concerts, in cities all over the world, like New York, Paris, Seoul and London. The concerts will also be available on stream online.

The event kicked off on Saturday with a pre-recorded performance from BTS and a live show from Elton John in front of the Eiffel Tower in France.

What is the festival trying to raise awareness of?

Thousands attended the concert in New York's Central Park. Those going to the concerts have to give proof of vaccination or a negative Covid test.

The festival is thought to be one of the biggest-ever international charity events, and has been organised by Global Citizen - a charity working to end extreme poverty by 2030.

Instead of asking people to donate money, the charity wants to use the event to encourage world leaders to take action on issues like climate change, the sharing of vaccines with poorer countries and famine.

"Across six continents, artists will help rally citizens in demanding that governments, major corporations and philanthropists work together to defend the planet and defeat poverty," Global Citizen said in a statement.

The charity are also calling for international governments plant one billion trees, deliver one billion vaccines to the poorest countries and donate meals for 41 million people on the brink of famine.

So far the USAID Administrator Samantha Power has said that the US will donate more than $295m (£215m) "to stave off famine and extreme hunger" as well as help the "urgent humanitarian needs the Covid-19 pandemic is leaving in its wake."

French President Emmanuel Macron has also said he will double the number of coronavirus vaccines his country is sending to poorer nations, from 60 million to 120 million.