Music for Relief, a non-profit founded by rock band Linkin Park to aid victims of natural disasters and help prevent those disasters, has teamed up with All Hands Volunteers to devise a win-win campaign for music fans and Oklahoma families alike.
By making a $10 donation through Omaze, contestants will be entered in a raffle to meet Juanes backstage in NYC, attend Crystal Method’s album release party in LA, or hang out with Linkin Park in their LA recording studio. The prizes also include a flight and a stay for up to two people at a 4-star hotel.
Contestants are encouraged to enter numerous times to increase their chances of winning, with each dollar going to support families in Oklahoma affected by the tornado. Recovery projects will include the rebuilding of homes and schools, and psychosocial support.
Music for Relief also encourages people to donate clothes and other goods to help families who lost their homes. A series of tornadoes struck central Oklahoma in May, destroying communities, killing dozens of people and injuring others.
Music for Relief was established by Linkin Park in 2005 to provide aid for those affected by the Indian Ocean Tsunami. Continuing and expanding on those efforts, Music for Relief has since donated more than $5,000,000 to victims of natural disasters.
Click here to find out more about Music Relief and help out with their relief efforts.
Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke has announced that his latest band, Atoms for Peace, will play a secret show in Los Angeles tonight (June 14) to benefit his bandmate Flea’s music education conservatory.
The show will be held at a secret location, dubbed “Club Amok,” and tickets are only available as giveaways by radio stations KCRW, KROQ and 98.7, and by purchasing raffle tickets, with all proceeds going to Flea’s Silverlake Conservatory of Music, a non-profit that provides low-cost and free music education and instruments to the Los Angeles community, enriching students’ lives through music.
Independent record stores across LA will give away tickets to the show with the purchase of the band’s most recent album “Amok.” Click here for the list of stores.
This exclusive show will mark the start of the Atoms for Peace world tour for Yorke and his bandmates Flea, Nigel Godrich, Joey Waronker and Mauro Refosco. Don’t miss the chance to catch them in an intimate setting while supporting a great cause before the band hits the road!
A generation ago, Seattle made its lo-fi mark on the map of music history, largely thanks to Sub Pop Records and its commitment to bringing grunge to a global audience. This July, the label celebrates its 25th anniversary with a weekend of music and comedy that will benefit charities and great causes.
Most grunge fans know Sub Pop as the label that first signed Nirvana and Soundgarden. But before grunge became a household word, founders Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman had trouble getting the American media to take notice of the burgeoning Seattle scene and thought they’d have better luck with the tastemaking British press.
They offered to fly British reporter Everett True from Melody Maker to cover the Seattle music scene, and by the time he left, the city had become the hotspot for the latest sound in music.
Sub Pop grew and evolved along with independent music, going on to release Flight of the Conchords’ self-titled, Grammy-winning album “Flight of the Conchords,” and The Postal Service’s “Give Up,” both of which went platinum.
Now the label is celebrating its silver anniversary. On Friday, July 12, Eugene Mirman will host The Silver Jubil-eve 25th Anniversary Comedy Thing (for Charity!) at the Moore Theatre in Seattle. David Cross, Jon Benjamin, Kristen Schaal, Kirt Braunohler and others will perform to raise money for a series of local charities. Ticket info can be found here.
King Tuff
Then, on Saturday, July 13, Seattle’s Georgetown District will host an entirely free, all-ages music festival featuring Built To Spill, King Tuff, METZ and other friends of Sub Pop. Meanwhile, Sub Pop’s sister label, Hardly Art, will throw a more intimate show for the 21-and-over crowd at The Mix with Portland post-punk group Hausu, Austin pop duo Deep Time, and more.
Though the festival is free, Sub Pop will be collecting donations. Together with proceeds from Comedy Thing ticket sales, these funds will benefit organizations including 90.3FM KEXP, a University of Washington-owned nonprofit arts organization that champions artists not typically supported by similar organizations or commercial media outlets, as well as Northwest Harvest and Northwest Parkinson’s Parkinson’s Foundation.
Northwest Harvest’s mission is to provide nutritious food to hungry people across the state in a manner that respects their dignity, while fighting to eliminate hunger. The organization distributed 26 million pounds of food last year. Northwest Parkinson’s Foundation works to establish quality of life for the Northwest Parkinson’s community through awareness, education advocacy and care.
What could be better than celebrating a storied record label with top-notch comedy and music, all while helping three important causes? Watch the trailers below and catch more details about the events here.
A smorgasbord of rock ‘n roll talent including Michelle Branch, Jason Sudeikis, Will Forte, Butch Walker and members of the Eagles of Death Metal performed at Stones Fest LA, a benefit concert to support Sweet Relief, a non-profit that helps musicians facing illness and disability.
The concert, which took place at L.A.’s Fonda Theatre on May 30, was put on by Best Fest, an organization created by music industry veterans Alex Levy, Austin Scaggs and Matt Romano. Best Fest throws other fests (Petty Fest, Dylan Fest) throughout the year to benefit Sweet Relief.
“These songs are the soundtrack to not just to our lives, the musicians on stage, but the audience,” said Alex Levy of Best Fest. “These are the songs that have taken us through our struggles, good times, and our bad times. We want to try and take it to other places, and present it to people so they can actually see it and get in on this party.”
Stones Fest LA was well attended by Stones fans and celebrities such as Olivia Wilde, Chloe Sevigny, Kimberly Stewart and Gavin DeGraw. The Fonda theatre was nearly filled to capacity as the Cabin Down Below Band took the stage to kick off the evening with “Monkey Man.”
What followed was a night of revolving artists singing their dream Rolling Stones songs to an adoring crowd. Musicians performed their interpretations of Stones songs such as “Under My Thumb” (sung by Har Mar Superstar) “The Last Time” (with Pete Yorn and J.D. King) and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” (sung by Ace Harper, lead singer of Diamond Baby).
After each number, the crowd would holler their approval as the set list progressed down a long list of Stones classics. Singer/songwriter Ruby Amanfu (known for her collaborations with Jack White) reduced the house to a hush with her chilling rendition of “Angie” before returning to the stage later alongside Eagles of Death Metal’s Dave Catching for a rousing version of “Gimme Shelter.” The multi-talented Juliette Lewis made her mark on “Beast of Burden” and pranced around the stage wearing an eye-catching pair of bright-red boots.
Since when did a night involving the Rolling Stones and Jameson amount to anything more than crapolah hangover? This Thursday (May 30), try turning those vices into virtue at Stones Fest LA, a concert at the Fonda Theatre in Hollywood featuring the music of the Rolling Stones, with all proceeds benefiting the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund.
Sweet Relief provides financial support to career musicians who are in need of extra support during times of illness, disability, and other age-related problems.
Artists including Butch Walker, Juliette Lewis, Jason Sudeikis and Michelle Branch are set to perform their favorite Stones songs along with many more surprise guests. The event follows on the heels of Stones Fest NY, which took place May 22 and 23 at the Bowery Ballroom and featured Norah Jones, Patrick Carney of the Black Keys and Har Mar Superstar.
Jameson Irish Whiskey will also be in attendance to sponsor the event and ensure that there will be enough satisfaction to go around.
Tickets for Stones Fest LA can be purchased via Ticketmaster here.
Green Day may be in the midst of their 99 Revolutions tour, but they’re not too busy to help out sick kids. The punk rock band have teamed up with skateboarding company Actions REALized to create a set of colorful skateboards, and a percentage of sales will benefit the Children’s Hospital and Research Center Oakland.
Each deck in the set features a different band members’ face, and the worlds “Uno! Dos! Tre! Cuatro!” – a reference to Green Day’s 2012 trilogy of albums.
Front man Billie Joe Armstrong said that his band and Actions REALized co-founder Jim Thiebaud share the belief that skateboarding and music can be “positive forces for change.”
Children’s Hospital and Research Center Oakland is the Bay Area’s only independent children’s hospital, and is located in Green Day’s home town. For more than 100 years, its mission has been to take care of every child who needs help, regardless of ability to pay.
Grab your Green Day skateboard decks here, and learn more about the Children’s Hospital here.
After years of suffering from severe war injuries, Tomas Young will be celebrated on May 19 at the Alamo Drafthouse Mainstreet in Kansas City, Missouri. A performance by Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine will be featured as well as a screening of “Body of War,” a documentary about the 33-year-old paralyzed veteran.
Less than a week into his deployment in Iraq, he was shot and paralyzed from the chest down. The film, “Body of War,” documents his life following Iraq, his coming to terms with his disability and how he became a voice for peace. Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder was inspired by Young to compose songs for the film.
Shortly after the film was released in 2007, Young suffered a pulmonary embolism and had his colon removed. He has since been bed ridden and his speech is severely impaired. He recently announced that he plans to remove a tube he has been ingesting food from in order to end his life.
“I wouldn’t be making this decision if I didn’t have to have almost everything done for me by somebody else,” he said. “I don’t want to see my body deteriorate more than it already has. I also haven’t felt positive stuff happening in the world for a very long time. I just figured now is the time to go.”
For the 10th anniversary of the War in Iraq, Young wrote a caustic letter entitled “The Last Letter” addressed to President Bush and Dick Cheney for their decision to enter into war. Morello called the letter “the most effective piece of anti-war literature in 50 years.”
Morello met Young after a screening of “Body of War,” and the two remained close. Morello’s solo act, The Nightwatchman, will perform at Young’s celebration, and was described as a “must see” by Young.
Morello said of Young’s decision to end his life, “He undervalues the impact he could continue to have – but we don’t have to live in his body. On one hand, I support him as a friend, but on the other, it makes me so deeply sad to miss this person. I think part of the impetus is he wants to kill off the impotence of his condition.”
Click here to watch the “Body of War” trailer and purchase the documentary. Proceeds go to organizations that aid wounded war veterans.
Like many teenage boys, Micah spends his time mastering Bon Jovi on guitar. Unlike most rock fans, he started learning chords while in treatment for a life-threatening immune deficiency at a Portland hospital.
Now, he’s thankful he picked up a guitar. “Music is therapy and can do unbelievable things, that’s my philosophy,” he says. “It can heal, comfort, soothe, bring joy, bring people together, and it’s just so powerful.”
Micah and other young people with serious illnesses may spend years in a hospital ward, but thanks to Children’s Cancer Association (CCA), these sterile environments can become places where children are able to grow and play. For almost two decades, its MusicRx program has delivered bedside music performances to kids like Micah and their families in pediatric hospitals in Oregon and Washington.
The flagship program proved so successful that in 2012, CCA brought it online and to make music medicine available for children around the country. Thanks to founder Regina
Brian Buesing and his daughter Macey at the MyMusicRx event at SXSW Fader Fort presented by Converse. Photo: Geordie Wood 2013
Ellis, her dedicated team, and a slew of artists including The Decemberists, Passion Pit and Gavin DeGraw, MyMusicRx.org now provides children with free music games, digital instruments, exclusive video greetings from their favorite artists, and more.
Their on-the-ground presence is growing as well; the program teamed up with Fader and Converse to host a rock show for kids in March during SXSW at the Fader Fort featuring Sallie Ford and The Sound Outside, Jenny O, and The Cardboard Songsters.
We had a chance to talk with Ellis about what inspired her to start MyMusicRx, the musicians who have supported it, and how anyone can get involved.
Music For Good: What inspired you to start MusicRx in hospitals? What was the initial reaction to the program?
Regina Ellis: The experience of having my oldest daughter hospitalized for two years inspired MusicRx. She and our family felt isolation, boredom and pain. When CCA pioneered MusicRx on the pediatric floor of the children’s hospital where my daughter was staying, the initial reaction was met with overwhelming excitement, not only from children but from families who were comforted by the music. Even the medical professional staff benefited from the therapeutic, music medicine experience that was being offered to their patients.
What could be better than supporting social justice campaigns and getting free concert tickets in return? Jay-Z, Kanye West, Bruce Springsteen, One Direction, Animal Collective, Depeche Mode, Black Sabbath, Rihanna, Beyonce, Pearl Jam, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Brandi Carlile and Fleet Foxes are among the plethora of artists participating in the Global Citizen initiative, dedicated to fighting extreme poverty and encouraging people to take action to promote social justice.
Through the program, people can collect points by sharing information about social justice campaigns on social media, watching videos, attending charity events, signing petitions, volunteering and more. The points can then be used to enter drawings for concert tickets from the aforementioned artists.
It’s run by Global Poverty Project, an education and advocacy organization working to build a movement to end extreme poverty within a generation.
Sounds like a win, win situation to us!
Watch the video about the Global Citizen initiative and get inspired to take action!
Check out Global Poverty Project’s Country Director Michael Trainer discussing his favorite bands of the moment here.
Whale populations are dwindling. Without action, their songs may soon find a place not in biology but in mythology, right beside the singing mermaid. Fortunately, composer and violinist Ysanne is teaming up with Sea Shepherd to ensure the whale song continues to soundtrack the sea.
Best known for her work with The Smashing Pumpkins, Ysanne has been hard at work on her audio-visual experience, “The Coldwater Project,” an ambitious undertaking featuring 13 songs, each presented with a film and partnering with a non-profit and a brand.
“My partnerships with each of the non-profits are an extension of this artwork,” Ysanne tells Music for Good. “They’re integral to the music and films, as each of my partners embodies a trait that I admire and that inspired me to write each song.”
This May she will join LUSH Cosmetics and launch the first chapter, “The Mermaid Song,” to benefit Sea Shepherd.
“I first met (Sea Shepherd founder) Captain Paul Watson in 2009, a man of great vision, ethics, and valor,” Ysanne explains. “As he told me about his life’s mission to protect whales, dolphins, and the oceans, I was inspired to support the work of Sea Shepherd.“
Ysanne composed “The Mermaid Song,” featuring the 44-piece City of Prague Philharmonic, which the gifted violinist conducted herself. Two films have been made for the song – a 10-minute live action piece and a lyrics video that will be available exclusively in the digital-bundling package available May 13, with all proceeds donated to Sea Shepherd. Additionally, a shorter six-minute edit will be streaming free online.
families who lost their homes. A series of tornadoes struck central Oklahoma in May, destroying communities, killing dozens of people and injuring others.
