lifestyle

Groundswell Growing For Gulf Coast Benefit Concerts Thursday

June 30, 2010 · By Sloane Davidson, Founder and CEO, Hello Neighbor

This Thursday, July 1st, music venues and activists worldwide will unite to benefit those directly impacted by the Gulf Coast Oil Spill. Proceeds from all participating venues will be donated to The Gulf Restoration Network, a nonprofit committed to uniting and empowering people to protect and restore the natural resources of the Gulf Region for future generations.

This is the beginning of a blog post that I am seeing coming flying into my google alerts and into my inbox. It's the start of a groundswell for tomorrow night's Gulf Coast Benefit concerts.

Current stand is 60 Meetups, about 45 which are music venues and the rest are awareness get-togethers. It's grown to 5 countries too (shout out to the Montreal and Paris contingent in particular)! 100% of online donations and the ticket price at venues is going to Gulf Restoration Network. Those who know me, know that I look to inspire others to find ways to give back and this benefit series is speaking to the passionate resolve we all have to help others in times of need.

How can you get involved? Make a donation, whatever amount you can give. Every dollar counts. Then, how about asking 5 friends to match you? Send an email or post to your Facebook wall and say something like:

I just donated $10 to support Gulf Benefit Concerts, will you match my donation?

You can attend. Full listing of venues is on the Meetup Everywhere page.

You can blog about the events. This takes our message to your fans, supporters and friends. A blog post goes a long way! An article in your local paper helps tell more people about what we're up to. To give you inspiration, here are links to some of the most recent press we've gotten. (And huge thanks to everyone below).

*New Orleans has been in a fight for survival for the past decade. In terms of the deep musical spirit of the area, what’s the general atmosphere among local artists in relation to this crisis? * The strength of the NOLA musical community is a force that some may have doubted before Katrina, but few question anymore. They have lead by example these past 5 years by refusing to let our musical heritage disappear. To me they represent pillars of strength for others to draw inspiration from. The cajun culture of the bayou regions is as important to Louisiana’s heritage as jelly-roll jazz. Right now the future for the fishing communities looks bleak, however, but I can say with certainty that the cajuns are proud people, and the backbone of Louisiana – we will not let them down.

"We know through music and the generosity of people that we can help make a difference in the Gulf Coast." Adler says. "We hope this inspires others to make a donation, attend an event and get involved."

Mountain of Venus, Matt Stell & the Crashers, Bent Grass Green, Black Pearl, Tiffany Christopher and Sarah Hughes will play the show on Thursday at George’s. The suggested donation is $10, and 100% off the door from the show will be donated to the cause.

“We tried to book a diverse group of music, from different genres to try and get all kinds of folks to come out,” said Mountain of Venus’s Tanya Shylock, one of the organizers of the local benefit at George’s.

Rebelution sells out nearly EVERY venue they play in southern California, so this is bound to be a fantastic event!

Many of our fellow Americans in the foreseeable future will have no livelihood, they're preparing to leave their homes, and are now lining up for food handouts. The wetlands and wildlife are in desperate need of our attention now and can’t wait for BP to start the clean up process. With hurricane season on the horizon there is reason for great concern and it’s crucial the affected communities be prepared for the worst.

Hoping for much more press, good will, donations and attendance to come. And if you want to get involved, what are you waiting for? Do it! And let me know how I can help.

Update: Full Press List for Gulf Coast Benefits:

Radio/TV