James Brown confirms Live 8 gig

James Brown is to wow the Live 8 crowd with his Soul classics

The Godfather of Soul is urging music fans to "get on up" to Edinburgh after confirming he will play at the city's Live 8 gig.

James Brown will take part in the free concert at Murrayfield on 6 July - the first day of the G8 summit.

The star from South Carolina said he was "delighted" to be taking part to raise awareness of poverty in Africa.

About 50,000 people are expected to attend the concert which also includes Snow Patrol, Travis and Texas.

The show, which is being organised by Midge Ure and Bob Geldof, will form the climax of a huge anti-poverty protest in Edinburgh on the day the G8 summit of world leaders begins in Gleneagles.

The concert will raise awareness of the problems in Africa and will make people think about humanity James Brown

Speaking at a media conference in London, Brown said: "I know that people need help and I want to be a part of it in any way I can.

"The concert will raise awareness of the problems in Africa and will make people think about humanity."

Geldof has faced criticism over the lack of black artists on the Live 8 bill and Brown is one of the few black performers playing at Murrayfield.

But he said the colour of the artists' skin did not matter, adding: "I'm not going to perform as a black artist, I'm going to perform as a man who makes music.

Global appeal

"You don't segregate. I've fought against that years ago. I don't care if children are black, white, red or yellow, I care that they are hungry."

Brown, who is currently in the middle of a European tour, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in December last year and underwent successful surgery.

LIVE 8 Will you report from Live 8?

He said his illness had not slowed him down.

"When I'm ripping and running I don't have time to worry about the situation," he said.

"A lot of people have the same thing and I pray for them," he said.

Referring to the Live 8 gig, his spokeswoman Jo Phillips said: "People will be coming to Edinburgh from all over the world - some are already on their way from Africa by bus."