A charity which helps children in hospital rock has launched its own Christmas single.
George's Rockstars are bidding for the festive number one slot with Let's Make Christmas Loud.
The track, a catchy pop/rock love letter to the classic Christmas singles of the 70's and 80s, was performed live inside Westquay and beside Southampton's seasonal ice rink.
It can be purchased at georgesrockstars.bandcamp.com/album/lets-make-christmas-loud for a donation to the charity launched in memory of George O'Shaughnessy from Fareham, who lost his five-year battle with leukaemia in 2019, aged just six.
George's mum Amy wanted to bring the music therapy George had enjoyed to all children’s cancer wards.
The charity currently supports four children’s wards in Hampshire - Southampton, Winchester, Basingstoke, and Portsmouth - and has plans to expand their service at Southampton Children's Hospital to cover the paediatric intensive care unit next year.
The song was written by Daniel Ash, a Southampton artist who is one of the charity's trustees and was George's music teacher, and features George's dad Craig on drums.
Recorded in a studio in Southampton, the song is dedicated to George, who battled leukaemia from the age of 22 months, and all the children who have to spend Christmas Day in hospital.
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Amy told the Daily Echo: "We loved performing our Christmas hit, Let's Make Christmas Loud, to lots of Christmas shoppers!
"Huge thanks to everyone for supporting us in our mission to get the song to Christmas number one. It really helps us to bring music to more children in hospital."
George adored music and had a huge zest for life and an infectious smile.
The charity was inspired by his experience with music therapy during intensive treatment at Bristol Children’s Hospital. Music therapy was the highlight of his week and gave him a way to express his frustrations and fears at being in isolation in hospital.
Music therapy isn’t widely available in NHS hospitals and George's family hope to bring it to all hospitalised children, who often have serious or life limiting illnesses and disabilities and, like George, spend too much of their childhood in hospital.
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