Help(2) (stylised in all caps) is a charity album created by the organisation War Child in order to raise funds for their work involving helping children living through war. It is scheduled to be released on 6 March 2026 through War Child Records. The album was produced by James Ford and was recorded in Abbey Road Studios in November 2025. The album features a variety of artists such as Arctic Monkeys, Black Country, New Road, Cameron Winter and Pulp among others.
War Child is a charity which "[works] to protect, educate and stand up for the rights of children living through conflict".[1] In previous years, War Child has released compilation albums bringing artists together to raise funds for the charity and to spread awareness.[2] Most notable was The Help Album produced by Brian Eno, which was recorded in a single day in September 1995 and featured contributions from artists such as Radiohead, Blur and Oasis.[3][4][5] The album would go on to sell 70,000 copies in its first week and raise £1,200,000 for the charity.[5][6]
In 2025, War Child reached out to James Ford and asked him to work on Help(2), to which he felt "incredibly honoured".[7] The album was recorded over a period of one week in Abbey Road Studios.[8][9] During recording of the album, artists often collaborated with each other; examples include a choir consisting of members from English Teacher, Pulp and Black Country, New Road among others on "Flags", Cameron Winter and cellist Amy Langley performing together on "Warning" and Olivia Rodrigo working with Blur guitarist Graham Coxon for "The Book of Love",[10] a cover of the song by the Magnetic Fields.[6]
Release
War Child teased the album earlier in January 2026 with an Instagram post reading "There is a group of artists who are working on something in support of War Child. There will be more information coming soon."[11] On 20 January, War Child confirmed the release of a brand new song by Arctic Monkeys, accompanied by a short slow-motion video of a child running into the sea.[12] The song, titled "Opening Night", was released on 22 January,[13] alongside the announcement of the compilation, scheduled to be released on 6 March 2026.[14] "Opening Night" is a ballad about "political sloganeering" and "supercomputer crusades"; it had been worked on a couple of years before its release, but was unfinished.[6]
The album will include a companion film by Jonathan Glazer; Glazer gave cameras to children throughout the studio while the album was being recorded, allowing them to record artists without any restrictions.[15][16] Footage recorded by children in Ukraine, Gaza, Yemen and Sudan was also obtained by Glazer's team and used in the film.[17]
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