250 NYC Audience Members Join Patti Smith and Stewart Copeland to Perform ‘People Have the Power’

Lori Dorn
October 1, 2025

The talented pair behind Choir! Choir! Choir! joined the great Patti Smith and Stewart Copeland in performing a rousing rendition of Smith’s 1988 song “People Have the Power” with the 250 audience members joining in. This powerful performance took place at the Onassis Festival 2019 at The Public Theatre in New York City.

On April 13, 2019, Patti Smith + Stewart Copeland (on percussion) joined Choir! Choir! Choir! at Onassis Festival 2019: Democracy Is Coming, co-presented by The Public Theatre and Onassis USA. Together, we sang Patti Smith’s anthem “People Have The Power” with a sold-out crowd and Stewart Copeland played percussion, specially a Brazilian samba frying pan!

The Original ‘People Have The Power’ Song

Other Choir! Choir! Choir! Audience Performances

7,000 Audience Members in Toronto Sing the Black Sabbath Song ‘Paranoid’ in Memory of Ozzy Osbourne

1,000 Members of a Choir in Dublin Sing ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ in Memory of Sinéad O’Connor

Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.