Going on a world tour is nothing new, but singer Joss Stone is giving a whole new meaning to the phrase, by performing in every single country on the planet.
The Kent-born songstress started the ambitious project five years ago, starting with gigs in Morocco, Swaziland, Tunisia and South Africa, before moving onto Australia and New Zealand.
But not all destinations are easy to get to, or perform in, which is why Joss’ latest posts – about making it to North Korea – are attracting a lot of attention.
Earlier this week, she revealed her intention to enter the country, which has famously strict visa requirements, on Instagram.
“We won’t have any WiFi or phone signal whilst we are there,” she added, telling fans to follow her tour guide on Instagram instead. “Simon [Cockerell] is helping us make this trip happen. He is very knowledgeable about North Korea and its history having been there over a hundred times he is definitely the best person to listen to on the subject as far as we are concerned.
“In just one meeting over a cup of tea he dispelled many myths. So like we do in many country’s we shall blindly and happily follow our new leader! :) we are all very excited to see this part of the world.”
Yesterday, Simon then shared pictures of Joss completing her mission and performing in a bar:
Brits are permitted to visit the country, though there are warnings from the Foreign Office in place, while US authorities advise their citizens not to travel there.
Last month, Joss managed to perform in Syria after crossing the border while stuffed in the back of a car, wrapped in a blanket from a hotel.
Sharing a video online, she wrote: “It was a little scary crossing the border as of course we have absolutely no idea what might transpire, we just have to trust the people on the ground that are advising us and looking after us.
“This was the beginning, it was cold and wet but also so nice to meet such welcoming kind people. #syria deserves not to be ignored #kurdistan deserves not to be ignored.”
She continued: “There is a lot of hurt here coming from all sorts of different directions.
“I heard that isis surrendered yesterday but that doesn’t mean it’s all over for the Syrian people or the Kurdish people.
“It is so complicated, a story I’m not in a position to tell you but all I can say is that I have learnt a lot from my short time there and I hope that peace will come to everyone on all sides soon.”
So far, Joss has managed to play over 175 countries, and counting...
