World-famous, award-winning singer, songwriter, and actress Janet Jackson performed a full-length show before a sold-out crowd packed with ecstatic fans for an AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) World AIDS Day Concert at NRG Arena in Houston, Texas on December 1, 2023. She opened the show with her 1997 hit song “Together Again” – a personal tribute to a friend lost to AIDS as well as others affected by HIV.

“It was amazing to see AHF’s mission and message – ‘It’s not over’ – represented throughout the U.S. and around the world through dozens of events, discussions, interviews, and community engagement opportunities,” said AHF Board Chair Dr. William Arroyo. 

“World AIDS Day in Houston was a transcendent night of love, compassion and commitment,” added AHF President Michael Weinstein. “Janet Jackson, Blair Underwood, and Debbie Allen took center stage Friday night in Houston, but it is the advocates across the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe whose voices carried this World AIDS Day with the important reminder that HIV and AIDS still affect millions of people globally, and the fight continues.”

Emmy, Grammy, and Golden Globe-winning choreographer, director, and producer Debbie Allen received a standing ovation as she took the stage to present an In Memoriam tribute, honoring those we’ve lost to AIDS-related illnesses over the past 40 years, including her beloved “boys from Fame.” The audience also was on its feet and cheering as AHF presented its Lifetime Achievement Award to Emmy Award-winning actor and activist Blair Underwood, a powerful voice in the fight against HIV/AIDS for more than three decades.

Rapper Willie D of the Geto Boys, recording artist and producer BeatKing, rapper Yungstar of the Screwed Up Click, renowned restaurateur Steve Rogers, U.S. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, and prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump were among the evening’s celebrity and VIP attendees.

World AIDS Day is an annual commemorative event to honor those we’ve lost to HIV/AIDS, to show support for those currently living with or affected by HIV/AIDS, and to emphasize the fight against HIV/AIDS is not over. Ticket sales from the concert benefit AHF’s HIV/AIDS awareness.