Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan were very "down-to-earth" when they met with the members of Kingdom Choir to finalise what songs they would sing at the couple’s wedding.
The London gospel group gained global recognition when they performed a unique version of Ben E. King song ‘Stand By Me’ at the royal couple’s nuptials at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle back in May, a performance that was witnessed by a star-studded congregation and a global TV audience of approximately two billion people.
Several members of the choir got to meet with Harry, 34, and Meghan, 37, at Kensington Palace ahead of the ceremony to finalise the details of their performance and conductor Karen Gibson has revealed they were just both "really lovely people" and a pleasure to sing for.
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph newspaper, she said: "The really hard work came before rehearsals, when we struggled to get the right feel and style. [Meghan and Harry] decided they wanted ‘Stand by Me’ during the ceremony, and a medley of ‘Amen’ and ‘This Little Light of Mine’ afterwards. But we couldn’t figure out how they wanted us to sing it. Every time we offered a recording of an arrangement they would say it was too gospely. Six of us went off to Kensington Palace to meet the couple. We just came up with something on the spot, and they liked it immediately. They were very approachable, very down-to-earth, really lovely people. And they seemed to like what we did on the day."
And Karen has confirmed that the initial approach for them to sing at the wedding came from Harry’s father Prince Charles and not, as many believed, from American bride Meghan – who worked as an actress before marrying into the British royal family starring in drama series ‘Suits’.
The 55-year-old choir leader said: "Actually it came from Prince Charles. He’s the one who loves gospel."
Since the wedding, Kingdom Choir signed a record deal with Sony Music, recorded an advert for Coca-Cola, performed at the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games in Sydney, Australia, and in November sang at the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
They will also appear on the ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ Christmas special to be broadcast on Christmas Day (25.12.18).
Kingdom Choir loved working with ‘down-to-earth’ Harry and Meghan
