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Tales from Covid: Michael Chugg Q&A

The impact that the coronavirus outbreak is having on the industry is plain to see, but the road to recovery still remains somewhat unpaved. As governments around the world crack down on the spread of the virus, the return to some kind of business as usual is looming. But just what will that look like and just how hard will the vestiges of the virus be for the industry to shake?

IQ is catching up with major industry players to determine how they are coping with the drastic changes to both professional and personal life, the path they will take to help business recover from the crisis and the long-term changes that we can expect to see.

Up first is veteran Australian promoter Michael Chugg, founder of Chugg Entertainment and co-founder of Frontier Touring, who reflects on the resilience of the Australian live community, the potential pushback on international touring in the country and his love for British crime dramas…

 


IQ: What lessons have you learned from the coronavirus outbreak?
MC:
I have learned that taking care of one’s health with attention to personal cleanliness and home environment is a priority and a major helper of immunity.

What do you expect recovery to look like, both for Chugg Entertainment and the wider industry?
The Australian and state governments are very much on the ball after a slow start. With the border closures and great campaign to the public on how to manage ourselves in mandatory quarantine, together with the community social distancing efforts, we are seeing a drop in new cases daily which hopefully will continue.

We are optimistic that Australian live music events and other public gatherings could be back as early as October or November, but it could be as late as January. However, I think international touring could be back here a lot later than that. If we manage to clean up Australia, the government may be reluctant to take the risk on international visitors bringing the virus back to us.

“We are optimistic that Australian live music events could be back as early as October or November, but it could be as late as January”

How do you think this will change the industry in the long term?
We are very worried about the long-term effect on the hundreds of companies involved in the production, presentation and running of tours, festivals and events, as well as the thousands and thousands of contractors, crews, security and other workers who lost all their income immediately when public gatherings were banned.

The doubt about when or if live entertainment can recommence is causing a lot of stress and depression worldwide, and I’m sure the industry will be a lot more cautious and careful about saturating the marketplace from now on.

First the bushfires and now Covid-19, the Australian live industry has had a tough few months – how has the industry coped as a whole?
It has been a tough six months and to cop corona on top of the bushfire season, which is right up there with the most disastrous fires ever, I think everyone is coping well. My partner and friend Michael Gudinski’s calmness and leadership has helped to keep the entire Frontier/Chugg family together and has been a great vibe for many people in the industry.

My partner and friend Michael Gudinski’s calmness and leadership has helped to keep the entire Frontier/Chugg family together

Organisations like Support Act, Sound Of Silence, I Lost My Gig, CrewCare and many others have done an amazing job dealing with many individuals and families in need.

This week, the federal government – who had already been offering tax breaks, freeze on loans and mortage payments, no evictions by landlords and other economic measures – came up with their JobKeeper Payment, which is a AU$130 billion (€72.4bn) fund basically covering the equivalent of 50% of all Australian salaries for the next six months. This is taking an incredible amount of pressure off everyone.

Finally, how are you keeping busy in self-isolation?
Being a lover of books, movies and music, there is plenty to keep one occupied. I am mad for British crime and mystery shows, so there is a ton of them. I am spending a lot of time on video calls through Zoom with the teams at Frontier/Chugg Entertainment and Chugg music, as well as with my family. I also loving cooking and now I’m able to do it every day.

 


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Cyrus cancels bushfire benefit, but Aus GP to go ahead

Miley Cyrus has cancelled her headline performance at the World Tour Bushfire Relief show in Melbourne this Friday (13 March) owing to concerns over the spread of coronavirus.

The show – part of Apollo World Touring and Westbrook Inc.’s new World Tour concert series – was due to take place at Lakeside Stadium on the eve of this weekend’s Australian grand prix, with Lil Nas X and the Veronicas also due to perform.

“Due to the recommendations of local, state, federal and international government authorities, including the [US] Center for Disease Control, to reduce potential health risks in response to the current global health crisis we are no longer traveling to Aus for the show,” Cyrus announced on Twitter yesterday.

Following Cyrus’s cancellation, promoter TEG Dainty said the whole show had been cancelled and that fans would receive a refund via ticket agency Ticketek.

“World Tour’s Saturday night show with Robbie Williams will still be going ahead, and we look forward to bringing Melbourne a fantastic night of entertainment,” reads a statement from TEG Dainty. “Robbie is already on his way to Australia.”

The Australian grand prix – the opening race of the 2020 Formula 1 season – will still go ahead as planned this Sunday (15 March), say organisers.

Andrew Westacott, CEO of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, says – unlike 20 March’s Bahrain grand prix, which will be spectator-less – the race will go ahead with fans in attendance. “We’ve got to go around things sensibly,” he says “We have to keep moving on through life while taking precautions.”

Professor Brendan Murphy, the chief medical officer for the Australian government, said that holding Sunday’s race would not pose a risk to public health, reports the BBC.

“I’m not feeling at all concerned going to mass gatherings or walking down the streets in Victoria,” he said. “So I don’t think that there’s a risk at the grand prix.”

“We have to keep moving on through life while taking precautions”

Other high-profile Covid-19-related cancellations over the last 24 hours include Madonna’s Madame X world tour, which has lost its final two shows in France, and Pearl Jam, who have been forced to call off a 17-date North American tour.

The Queen of Pop was due to play the 2,800-capacity Grand Rex in Paris tonight and tomorrow (10–11 March). However, as of Sunday (8 March), the French government has outlawed gatherings of more than 1,000 people (down from a previous ban of shows over 5,000 fans), meaning that (“with profound regret” on Madonna’s part) the concerts cannot go ahead.

Meanwhile, Pearl Jam have postponed a North American trek due to begin in Toronto on 18 March.

“We are being told that being part of large gatherings is high on the list of things to avoid, as this global health crisis is now beginning to affect all of our lives,” reads a statement from the grunge veterans.

“So it is with deep frustration and regret that we are forced to make this most unfortunate of announcements.” A European tour is due to begin in June.

Photo © Raph_PH on Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

 


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SITG sells record 50k tickets for 20th anniversary

Australia’s Splendour in the Grass festival celebrated its largest ever ticket sale today (27 February), with fans clearing out all 50,000 tickets under an hour.

The festival has sold four times as many tickets for its 20th edition than it did for its inaugural event in 2001. This year’s festival is the biggest ever, marking a 7,500 capacity increase from last year.

The Strokes, Flume and Tyler the Creator are heading up the festival from 24 to 26 July, which will also feature performances from Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Midnight Oil, Denzel Curry and more.

“The response to our 20th edition of Splendour in The Grass has been phenomenal,” says event producer Jessica Ducrou. “We know many people are doing it tough in our local communities at the moment and we’re grateful for the opportunity to bring people together in Byron through the uniting power of music.”

New South Wales is one of the regions most affected by the Australian bushfires, which have been raging through the country since September.

“We never would have thought when we produced our first edition of Splendour back in 2001 that it would resonate and mean so much to so many people 20 years later”

“We never would have thought when we produced our first edition of Splendour back in 2001 that it would resonate and mean so much to so many people 20 years later.”

Harley Evans, managing director of Splendour’s ticketing partner Moshtix, comments: “It’s been Moshtix’s great privilege to be involved in this wonderful event for so many years and the incredible demand for the 20th edition is a testament to the efforts of Jess, Paul, and their amazing team, and the love that the public has for Splendour.

“In difficult times, it will be wonderful to see 50,000 people come together in July to celebrate music and life.”

Moshtix, formerly the biggest independent ticketing service in Australia, was acquired by Ticketmaster in February last year.

Fans can sign up to the resale waiting list here.

 


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Miley Cyrus to headline World Tour Bushfire Relief

Miley Cyrus is headlining a bushfire benefit concert in Melbourne on Friday 13 March, as part of new global concert series World Tour.

Promoted by Apollo World Touring, TEG Dainty and Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith’s Westbrook Inc., World Tour Bushfire Relief is a one-night only event taking place at Melbourne’s Lakeside Stadium, featuring performances from Lil Nas X, the Veronicas and DJ Seb Fontaine.

The concert is taking place the night before the previously announced Robbie Williams-headlined World Tour show at Lakeside Stadium and alongside the Australian Grand Prix.

Proceeds from ticket sales will go to the WWF Australian Wildlife and Nature Recovery Fund and the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal, two Australian-based nonprofits working to rebuild communities affected by the country’s wildfires and restore forests and wildlife.

The benefit concert follows Fire Fight Australia, the Queen-headlined event organised by TEG, TEG Dainty and TEG Live that has so far raised almost AU$10 million (US$6.6m) for bushfire relief.

“The partnership that AgBioEn has developed with World Tour is all about inspiring music fans to become a part of the exciting transition to a net-zero, climate-friendly future”

World Tour recently announced a multi-year, multi-territory partnership with AgBioEn, an Australia-based renewable energy company. The partnership will see the concert series visit cities in Canada, Italy, Taiwan, the US, Germany, South Korea and Japan.

“As an Australian company, AgBioEn are devastated by the impacts of the recent bushfires, and we are proud to have been able to work with World Tour, TEG Dainty and The Australian Grand Prix Corporation to rapidly pull together this exciting event with Miley,” comments AgBioEn chairman Charles Hunting.

“The partnership that AgBioEn has developed with World Tour is all about inspiring music fans to become a part of the exciting transition to a net-zero, climate-friendly future.”

Tickets for World Tour Bushfire Relief go on sale on Tuesday 25 February at 2 p.m. AEDT here. Tickets for the Robbie Williams concert are available here from AU$99 ($65).

 


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TEG raises over AU$9.5m for bushfire relief

Sunday’s Fire Fight Australia charity concert has raised almost AU$10 million (US$6.7m) for bushfire relief, with promoters TEG Dainty and TEG Live expecting more donations to come.

The mammoth nine-and-a-half-hour benefit concert took place at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium on 16 February, with an audience of 75,000 watching performances from Queen and Adam Lambert, Alice Cooper, Michael Bublé, 5 Seconds of Summer and Peking Duk, among others.

The concert was broadcast live across Australia, thanks to a partnership between TEG and television networks Foxtel and Seven Network. Highlights of the show will be broadcast worldwide in the coming days with a call to action to donate.

The AU$9.5 m ($6.4m) raised so far will go to rural and regional fire services, Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery, RSPCA Bushfire Appeal and the BizRebuild programme.

“What a day and what a night it has been,” comments TEG CEO Geoff Jones. “Our huge thanks are owed to the 23 artists and bands and to the many companies and people who donated their time and services to make Fire Fight Australia happen.

“It has been an enormous effort from the music industry to pull this concert together in five weeks and we are just so proud of what has been achieved through our collective effort.”

“It has been an enormous effort from the music industry to pull this concert together in five weeks”

“We are overjoyed at the response from all of the fans here tonight at ANZ Stadium in Sydney and around the world,” adds TEG Dainty CEO Paul Dainty. “From the first conversation with Queen’s manager, Jim Beach, the band’s immediate response to support this amazing event was what set everything in motion.

“We want to give a special shout out to Celeste Barber for hosting this historic event, she has been one of the greatest supporters and we thank her.

“People can continue to donate and purchase the official Fire Fight Australia T-Shirt online with 100% of proceeds going to the fundraising efforts.”

A full breakdown of the final amounts raised will be made available in due course. TEG intends to keep donations open until mid May, when international broadcasts end. Accounting firm Deloitte will provide a post-event report detailing revenues, expenses and confirmation of the final donations to the various charities.

Jones, Dainty and TEG Live CEO Tim McGregor wrote in IQ ahead of Fire Fight Australia this weekend, describing how the star-studded event came to be. Read TEG’s journey to Fire Fight Australia here.

Fire Fight Australia: The journey so far


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Fire Fight Australia: The journey so far

Geoff Jones, Paul Dainty and Tim McGregor write for IQ in advance of TEG’s mammoth Fire Fight Australia benefit concert this weekend.

This Sunday the Australian music industry will come together to present its response to the worst bushfire season in living memory – and it promises to be something pretty special.

FIRE FIGHT AUSTRALIA is a nine-and-a-half-hour benefit stadium concert in Sydney featuring a cavalcade of leading international and local acts performing in in front of 75,000 fans, with millions more watching on TV across Australia, New Zealand, the US and the UK.

We hope to raise many millions to aid rural and regional Australia’s short, medium and long-term recovery through the generosity of fans who have bought tickets, merchandise, food and drink and have donated through firefightaustralia.com.

The concert has come together in five short weeks thanks to the creativity and collaborative spirit of our industry’s people. This is the story of how we did it but first, a bit about why.

We are sure you have read about the recent devastation Down Under, caused by sustained drought and intense heat that sparked terrifying wildfires.

Dozens of lives have been lost, thousands of homes and businesses destroyed, thousands of people evacuated, countless animals killed and more than 46 million acres of Australia’s bushland razed. Sydney and Melbourne dwellers had daily reminders of our fellow Aussies’ plight just miles away, in the form of choking smog.

Many of TEG’s staff and their families and friends were affected personally by the bushfires and, like so many others, we were keen to do our bit. In late November, with the bushfire season still in its early throes, we spied the opportunity.

The concert has come together in five short weeks thanks to the creativity and collaborative spirit of our industry’s people

Geoff and Paul had spoken about the idea of a Live Aid-style bushfire benefit. It would feature the very same band who had stolen the show at Wembley in 1985, a little group from England called Queen (now Queen + Adam Lambert).

On Saturday 15th February, Queen + Adam Lambert would be playing ANZ Stadium in Sydney’s Olympic Park as part of their global Rhapsody Tour, promoted by TEG Dainty. They were back to the top of their game and big as ever in the wake of the hit movie Bohemian Rhapsody.

On paper, it seemed we had the infrastructure, the iconic act, and the opportunity – in tragic circumstances – to create something special that could galvanise many other acts to join the bill and make a difference.

Paul made a call to the band’s manager Jim Beach and, to our immense gratitude, they were supportive from the word go. The same was true of Michael Bublé and Alice Cooper, who were also due to be in Australia with TEG Dainty and TEG Live respectively at that time.

It was an ambitious deadline and it would be a massive challenge to add to our non-stop day jobs. But at our final meeting before the holidays TEG’s senior leadership team roared in approval. By Christmas Eve we had snapped up the firefightaustralia.com domain name.

First thing Sunday morning on 5 January, Geoff, Paul and TEG Live managing director Tim McGregor hit the phones to start filling out the bill. The response from the acts and the labels was incredible.

ANZ Stadium made a generous offer to provide us the venue for free the day after Queen + Adam Lambert’s full concert. Our own venue, the Qudos Bank Arena next door could operate as a production staging point and host artist dressing rooms.

We had the infrastructure, the iconic act, and the opportunity – in tragic circumstances – to create something special

On Monday 6 January we appointed a project leader – the highly capable Jared Wright – and together we put together a project leadership team of 13 including executives and staff from TEG Dainty, TEG Live, TEG Corporate and Ticketek, with a total team of more than 25 working around the clock on top of their day jobs.

With the idea now becoming a reality, we felt confident enough to send out a “save the date” media release on Tuesday 7 January and start doing radio, TV and press.

Our message was simple: we wanted to raise as much money as possible towards bushfire relief to help those affected – and to raise spirits in the process through the unifying power of live music. Our ethos: to be inclusive and to communicate clearly with all stakeholder groups.

By the Friday, we had secured most of the 23 wonderful acts that would perform (you can read the full line-up here) and – in another coup – our host, the writer, actor and comedian Celeste Barber, whose record-breaking online appeal had just raised more than AU$50 million (US$34m) towards bushfire relief and won global acclaim.

To determine FIRE FIGHT AUSTRALIA’s recipient organisations and charities we undertook extensive due diligence. All concert ticket profits would go to rural and regional fire services in affected states, the Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery Fund and the RSPCA Bushfire Appeal, with the BizRebuild program added later.

At 1pm on 13 January, we went on sale. Tickets were priced at top price of $100. By close of business, we had all but sold out. We were stunned by the fans’ generosity and desire to be involved.

We were inundated with offers from global and local media companies to televise and stream the event. That created an opportunity for a live telecast to raise more money and to allow music fans everywhere to see the concert.

Our message was simple: we wanted to raise as much money as possible towards bushfire relief – and to raise spirits in the process through the unifying power of live music

We settled on one of the leading local free to air television networks, Seven, and the leading subscription television service Foxtel, which also set up global distribution. All donations made through the broadcasts would go to the Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal’s Fire Fight Fund.

And that’s when the real hard work began…

As anyone who works in live entertainment will know, we have spared you a million details about what it has really taken to make FIRE FIGHT AUSTRALIA happen – and we want to acknowledge Jared Wright and the TEG FIRE FIGHT Team for the long nights and weekends it has taken, and the challenges ahead to deliver the show on the day.

TEG’s thanks are owed to so many who moved so fast to make the event possible, including (deep breath): the 23 artists and bands who gave it their all; the 1,400 workers on the day, including production crew, stagehands, riggers, audio, lighting, video and backline personnel, stage managers, volunteers; the suppliers and drivers of 35 trucks; the providers of numerous hotel rooms and suites; and the 23 media and marketing companies, 22 production companies, eight catering and food and beverage companies and seven car companies that donated staff, products and services.

Shout outs too to NSW Transport for waiving public transport costs for ticket holders, to Cotton On for creating and supplying FIRE FIGHT AUSTRALIA T-Shirts, to Fetch TV for buying tickets for 1000 rural fire fighters to attend the event, to Gildan Brands for supplying those firies with specially designed FIRE FIGHT T-shirts, to those we were not able to accommodate and all those we have not had space to mention.

Just like the generosity and resourcefulness of the live music and entertainment industry, the list goes on and on.

Now, on with the show!

 


Geoff Jones is CEO of TEG, Paul Dainty is CEO of TEG Dainty and Tim McGregor is CEO of TEG Live

 

“Regret” as promoters call off Sound Relief 2020

Sound Relief, a concert series co-organised by major Australian promoters in aid of wildfire relief, will not go ahead ahead as planned.

Earlier today, the Sound Relief team, consisting of Frontier Touring, Chugg Entertainment, Live Nation Australia and New Zealand, IMC Music HQ and Secret Sounds, announced that the charity concert series would not happen.

“It is with regret that the organisers of Sound Relief have decided not to proceed with concerts in March as originally planned,” reads a Facebook post.

“Since announcing our intention to undertake Sound Relief 2020 the offer of assistance from international and domestic artists, industry, media and suppliers has been second to none.

“However Sound Relief is a series of concert events that we don’t wish to stage lightly and after careful consideration, we believe proceeding with the concerts in March won’t produce the impactful result that we believe these events can – and should – have.”

“Discussions for any future event are shifting to restoration, recovery and prevention and a view to maximising results to best benefit these areas”

The organisers add that there is “no overnight fix” for the issues the country is facing and state that “discussions for any future event are subsequently shifting to restoration, recovery and prevention and a view to maximising results to best benefit these areas.”

The fires have been raging through southern and eastern Australia since September 2019, burning over ten million hectares of land.

Sound Relief first took place in 2009, organised by Chugg Entertainment, Frontier Touring, and others, to provide relief from Victorian bushfires and flooding in Queensland. The concerts featured performances from the likes of Coldplay, Taylor Swift and Kings of Leon, as well as many local acts.

Fire Fight Australia, a benefit concert organised by TEG Dainty and TEG Live, is taking place on Sunday 16 February, at the ANZ Stadium (83,500-cap.) in Sydney. Queen and Adam Lambert, Alice Cooper, 5 Seconds of Summer, Michael Bublé, Hilltop Hoods and Olivia Newton-John are among acts playing the all-day event, which sold over 65,000 tickets in under five hours earlier this month.

A limited number of tickets for Fire Fight Australia are available here.

Photo: Jana Beamer/Flickr (CC BY 2.0) (cropped)

 


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Touts burnt as Fire Fight Australia sells out

The Fire Fight Australia benefit concert has sold out, promoters TEG Dainty and TEG Dainty have confirmed, with Sydney’s ANZ Stadium set to host more than 70,000 concertgoers for over nine hours of music on Sunday 16 February.

Organisers revealed yesterday that some 65,000 tickets had been sold in under five hours for the Queen-headlined benefit, which aims to raise funds to provide relief for those fighting or affected by the Australian bushfires. All profits from concert tickets will be donated to rural and regional fire services, the Australian Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery programme and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) Bushfire Appeal.

Other performers include Alice Cooper, KD Lang, Olivia Newton-John, Delta Goodrem and Tina Arena, with a second wave set to be announced in the coming weeks.

All tickets for the benefit have been removed from eBay

Inevitably, tickets for the event – only available initially through TEG-owned Ticketek – have already started to be listed on secondary sales websites, with The Music reporting bids of up to A$455 (compared to a face value of $100) on eBay.

However, Viagogo – to the surprise of many – is preventing the resale of Fire Fight tickets, and an eBay spokesperson tells The Music all tickets for the benefit have been removed from their website.

Fire Fight Australia is one of a number of benefit concerts taking place in Australia in aid of bushfire relief. Details of Sound Relief 2020, a concert organised by leading Australian promoters Chugg Entertainment, Frontier Touring, Live Nation Australia, Secret Sounds and IMC Music HQ, will be released soon. Live Nation’s Australian businesses, meanwhile, have pledged $500,000 to bushfire relief.

 


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65k tickets sold in under 5 hours for TEG benefit

All general admission tickets for TEG Dainty and TEG Live’s upcoming bushfire benefit concert have sold out, as the promoters record an “overwhelming demand” for the Queen- and Alice Cooper-fronted event.

According to a statement from organisers, over 65,000 tickets had been sold for Fire Fight Australia, a nine-hour concert raising funds to provide relief from the Australian wildfires, within five hours of release.

The promoters state they are now working together with Sydney’s 83,500-capacity ANZ Stadium, where the event is taking place from 1 p.m. on Sunday 16 February, to push sales over the 70,000 mark.

All profits from concert ticket will be donated to rural and regional fire services, the Australian Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery programme and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) Bushfire Appeal.

Queen and Adam Lambert, Alice Cooper, Olivia Newton-John, Peking Duk, John Farnham and Hilltop Hoods are among acts performing at the event

Queen and Adam Lambert, who are performing a sold-out show at the stadium the previous night, will appear alongside Alice Cooper, Olivia Newton-John, Peking Duk, John Farnham and Hilltop Hoods at the event, which is hosted by Australian comedian Celeste Barber, the initiator of a AU$50 million (US$34.5m) Facebook fundraising drive for bushfire relief.

Fire Fight Australia is one of a number of benefit concerts taking place in Australia in aid of bushfire relief. Details of Sound Relief 2020, a concert organised by leading Australian promoters Chugg Entertainment, Frontier Touring, Live Nation Australia, Secret Sounds and IMC Music HQ, will be released soon.

Live Nation’s Australian businesses – Live Nation Australia and New Zealand, Secret Sounds, Ticketmaster Australia and Moshtix – today (13 January) pledged $500,000 to bushfire relief.

A limited number of tickets for the TEG event are still available via the Ticketek website. Tickets are priced at AU$70 ($48), $85 ($59) and $100 ($69). Fans can make an additional donation to bushfire relief here.

 


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Australian live community rallies for wildfire relief

The live music community is showing its support for those affected by the Australian bushfires, as a multitude of benefit concerts crop up around the country and major artists pledge money to bushfire relief.

According to Australia’s Rural Fire Service, more than 8 million hectares of land has been burned since the bushfires began in September, with over half of the damage occurring in New South Wales alone.

A number of high-profile artists, as well as members of the wider entertainment world, have donated money to fire services in the country, including a US$1 million pledge by Elton John, A$750,000 (US$514,534) from Metallica, US$500,000 from Pink, A$500,000 (US$342,568) from Kylie Minogue and US$100,000 from Australian DJ Flume.

Many artists are also taking to the stage in order to do their bit for bushfire relief, as a growing number of benefit concerts pop up across Australia. Here, IQ provides a round up some of the biggest charity events…

 


Sound Relief

When: TBA
Where: TBA

First staged in 2009 in aid of the Victorian bushfires and Queensland floods, the Sound Relief benefit is returning to Melbourne and Sydney this year in response to the current wildfire crisis.

“In response to the devastating bushfires currently sweeping across the country, the Australian Music Community will band together once again under the unified banner of Sound Relief 2020,” reads a post on the Sound Relief Facebook page.

A collaborative music industry effort, a number of promoters including Frontier Touring, Chugg Entertainment, Live Nation Australia and New Zealand, IMC Music HQ and Secret Sounds will be involved in organising the event.

Artists including Coldplay, Taylor Swift and Kings of Leon performed at the 2009 event. Details about the line-up, locations and date of this year’s benefit will be released in due course.

“The Australian Music Community will band together once again under the unified banner of Sound Relief 2020”

Fire Fight Australia

When: Sunday 16 February
Where: ANZ Stadium, Sydney, NSW

As previously reported in IQ, Australasian powerhouse promoters TEG Dainty and TEG Live are hosting a charity concert at the 83,500-capacity ANZ Stadium. The promoters promise a “major musical event” featuring “globally renowned artists”.

The line-up has yet to be announced for the event, although speculation – to be taken, as ever, with a pinch of salt – are circulating as to whether Queen and Adam Lambert will top the bill, given they are playing a TEG-promoted show at the stadium the day before.

More information about the event will become available here in the coming weeks.

The promoters promise a “major musical event” featuring “globally renowned artists”

Out of Bounds

When: Saturday 18 January
Where: Campbelltown Athletics Centre, Sydney, NSW

Leading Australian promoter Frontier Touring, together with fellow Mushroom Group company I Oh You, is offering discounted Fire Relief tickets to the inaugural Out of Bounds festival.

The event, which will take place across two stages at the 8,000-capacity athletics centre, will feature performances from Australian hip-hop artist Illy, local alternative-rock band the Rubens and Brisbane singer and rapper Mallrat.

In response to the bushfire crisis, festival organisers introduced a special ticket offer, with AUD$10 ($7) of a new $69 ($47) ticket going directly to the Red Cross Bushfire Emergency Appeal.

Fire Relief tickets for the festival are available here.

“Our hearts go out to the families who have lost loved ones and the communities across Australia suffering”

Down to Earth

When: Wednesday 26 February
Where: Sidney Myer Music Bowl, Melbourne, Victoria

Promoted by Handsome Tours in conjunction with Mirror Music Group, Lemon Tree Music, Arts Centre Melbourne and OneMusic Australia, Down to Earth is raising funds for the Australian Red Cross and the NSW Wildlife Information Rescue and Emergency Service (Wires), as well as other organisations focusing on long term solutions to the bushfire emergency.

Australian acts Angus and Julia Stone, Briggs, Gangs of Youths, Jack River, Ruby Fields and Tash Sultana will perform at the event, which will be held at the 10,000-capacity Sidney Myer Music Bowl.

“Collectively, our hearts go out to the families who have lost loved ones, the firies who have put their lives on the line and continue to, and the communities across Australia suffering,” reads a collective statement from artists.

“We hope to give you the greatest thing we can in this time of great need – our voices and our songs.”

Tickets go on sale at 9 a.m. on Thursday 10 a.m. (AEDT) January local time, available here.

“We hope that throwing this Raise ‘Em Up show provides people another way to support their [the charities’] critical work”

Raise ‘Em Up

When: Saturday 25 January
Where: The Tivoli, Brisbane, Queensland

The Tivoli, a 1,600-capacity music venue and theatre in Brisbane, will host artists including Megan Washington, Matt Corby and the Kit String Triangle in an effort to raise AUD$100,000 ($68,568) for bushfire relief.

Dave Sleswick, co-owner and creative director of the venue says all ticket, bar and merchandise profits from the evening will be shared between the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal and Wires.

“Both Wires and the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal are hugely worthy causes and we hope that throwing this Raise ‘Em Up show provides people another way to support their critical work,” comments Sleswick.

Tickets go on sale on 9 January at 9 a.m. (AEST), available here.

“A gig like this is the least we can do for all the communities that have suffered and fought these fires”

Fire Aid

When: Friday 31 January
Where: Fremantle Arts Centre, Perth, Western Australia

Artists from Western Australia are banding together in solidarity with the worse-affected eastern part of the country. John Butler Trio, the Waifs, San Cisco and Stella Donnelly are performing at the 400-capacity Freemantle Arts Centre in Perth to raise money for the NSW Rural Fire Service, the Victorian Bushfire Appeal and Wires.

“A gig like this is the least we can do for all the communities that have suffered and fought these fires,” comments John Butler. “Our hearts and prayers go out to all those that have fallen victim to this national disaster and hopefully gigs like this can make even smallest of meaningful difference.”

Tickets go on sale on Thursday 9 January at 9 a.m. (AWST). Tickets cost AUD$96.90 ($67), with a live recording of the event available for AUD$20 ($14).

“As much as raising funds, this FireAid2020 concert is about community spirit”

FireAid2020

When: Friday 24 January
Where: Bong Bong Picnic Racecourse, Bowral, NSW

John Waters, Daryl Braithwaite, Leo Sayer and Megan Washington are among artists performing at a similarly named event in New South Wales, which will be hosted by Australian television presenter and actress Julia Zemiro.

“All of us want to do something; but I realised I had the power of public recognition and that I had a lot of friends in the music and entertainment industry with a lot more of that power than me, and the idea of FireAid2020 ‘The Concert’ was born,” says Waters in a statement.

“As much as raising funds, this FireAid2020 concert is about community spirit; about unconditional love for each other; about fire-in-the-belly action. Rock On Australia!”

Tickets for FireAid2020 are available here for AUD$65 ($45).

“There has been a lot of devastation in Australia lately that is very saddening to witness”

Tones and I Bushfire Benefit Concert

When: Tuesday 28 January
Where: 170 Russell, Melbourne, Victoria

As reported by IQ yesterday, Australian singer Tones and I will be performing a charity concert at the 1,050-capacity 170 Russell in Melbourne, with proceeds going to the Australian Red Cross, Country Fire Authority and the NSW Rural Fire Service.

Tones and I, real name Toni Watson, will be supported by Adelaide singer Adrian Eagle, with more acts yet to be announced.

“There has been a lot of devastation in Australia lately that is very saddening to witness,” the singer, who calls recent events in the country “apocalyptic”, writes in an Instagram post. “We are in this together.”

Tickets for the concert, which went on sale yesterday, have now sold out. Fans can make a charity donation here.

Photo: J.E.T. 603/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

 


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