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Edited By Jonathan Cohen. September
02, 2005, 10:55 AM ET
Music-Related Hurricane
Relief Efforts Grow
By Barry A. Jeckell, N.Y.
Faith
Hill and Aaron Neville have been added to tonight's
(Sept. 2) "A Concert for Hurricane Relief," staged in
New York by NBC Universal. Meanwhile, music channels BET
and Great American Country have announced plans for
benefit events on Sept. 9 and Sept. 27, respectively.
As
previously reported, NBC's one-hour telethon will
also feature Hill's husband, Tim McGraw, along with
Harry Connick Jr. and Wynton Marsalis. Additionally, the
Matt Lauer-hosted special will feature appearances by
celebrities Leonardo DiCaprio, Mike Myers, Hilary Swank,
Lindsay Lohan, Claire Danes, John Goodman, Eric LaSalle
and Eli Manning.
All
involved will encourage viewers to donate to the Red
Cross Disaster Relief Fund to help those suffering in
the wake of Hurricane Katrina's wrath, which has
devastated areas of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and
Georgia.
The event will be
broadcast live from NBC's New York studios at 8 p.m. ET
on NBC, CNBC and MSNBC, and will air on Sirius Satellite
Radio's CNBC channel 101. The broadcast will be tape
delayed on the West Coast and will re-air on CNBC at 11
p.m. ET and throughout the weekend.
BET has secured the commitment of Stevie
Wonder, Jay-Z, Sean "Diddy" Combs, Omarion, Common and
David Banner, as well as New Orleans-based artists
Juvenile and Master P. The music channel is coordinating
its event with the National Urban League, the American
Red Cross, Russell Simmons, the Warner Music Group and
Essence Communications.
"The fury of nature has shown us once again
what happens when its strength collides with the true
frailty of humankind," BET president/CEO Debra L. Lee
said.
Working with the
Grand Ole Opry, GAC has enlisted Alan Jackson, Alison
Krauss, Keith Urban, Marty Stuart, Craig Morgan, Julie
Roberts and Billy Currington for "Country Reaches Out:
An Opry Benefit for the American Red Cross." The show
will be broadcast live and commercial-free from
Nashville's Grand Ole Opry House on GAC. Additionally,
the event will be simulcast on the DIY Network and Fine
Living channels on television, the Opry's longtime
terrestrial radio home WSM-AM, Sirius Satellite Radio
and opry.com.
In addition
to encouraging viewers and listeners to donate, all
profits from ticket sales to the show will also benefit
Red Cross efforts. Additional country artists are
expected to join the lineup in the coming weeks.
Beyond the benefit show, the
Grand Ole Opry and GAC are planning to host an online
auction of country music memorabilia at opry.com and
GACtv.com. GAC is also producing a series of public
service announcements featuring artists and network
personalities pleading for donations to the hurricane
relief effort.
In other
news, the Recording Academy has established the
MusiCares Hurricane Relief Fund, and pledged an initial
donation of $1 million "for music people affected by
Hurricane Katrina." The money will be used to provide
assistance with basic living expenses (shelter, food,
utilities, transportation), medical expenses, clothing;
instrument and recording equipment replacement and more.
The Academy's 12 regional
chapters will also orchestrate local fundraising efforts
to help musicians and those associated with music who
have been affected by storm's wrath. "We encourage the
industry and the world to help in any way they can," the
organization says in a statement that directs those
interested in helping to the MusiCares Web site.
Additonally, Putumayo World Music has
announced plans to donate money stemming from a pair of
compilations to relief efforts. The eclectic label has
pledged the proceeds of this year's "Putumayo Presents:
New Orleans" and 2002's "Putumayo Presents: Mississippi
Blues" through the end of the year.
"The necessity for redevelopment of these
regions is imperative to preserve the heritage that has
influenced virtually every aspect of our culture and
arts," the label says in a statement.
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