Sting opens his set with Russians, a 1985 single about the cold war that he has reworked and reissued to raise funds for a Ukraine relief charity. “I’ve hardly played it in years, because I thought it wasn’t relevant any more,” he sighs. “But, in light of recent events …”
Accompanied only by a Ukrainian cellist, Yaroslava Trofymchuk, the black-pleather-clad 70-year-old croons the song’s chorus and earnest central message: “Russians love their children too.” He cautions us: “Don’t forget, a lot of brave Russians are protesting against this war.”
