JOHANNESBURG — Beyonce led an all-star line-up including Ed Sheeran, Jay-Z and Usher in Johannesburg at a concert to honor the life and legacy of Nelson Mandela. The concert was the climax of a year of events celebrating the centennial of Mandela's birth in 1918, and part of a campaign to tackle poverty, child malnutrition and boost gender equality.

This year's Global Citizen Festival is being held at Johannesburg's 94,736-capacity FNB stadium. Thousands of music fans flocked to the stadium hours before the gig began.

As well as a constellation of global stars that also included Pharrell Williams and Coldplay's Chris Martin, President Cyril Ramaphosa hosted fellow heads of state from Ghana, Rwanda and Sierra Leone. Williams received a rapturous reception for his rendition of "Get Lucky", with many cheering fans holding phones aloft and dancing exuberantly.

South African stars Trevor Noah and Bonang Matheba also made appearances, as the largely local crowd braved heavy downpours to attend. Ahead of the concert co-host Oprah Winfrey hailed Mandela's "goodness and integrity", describing him as her "favorite mentor".

Earlier Sunday, Mandela's widow Graca Machel, draped in a bright yellow and blue dress, took to the stage to honor her late husband in front of the near-capacity crowd.

The Global Citizen initiative aims to help eradicate extreme poverty by 2030 and has staged events in other global cities including London, Brussels, and New York. — AFP