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Benefit gigs address impact of severe weather

Artists have mobilised to produce benefit concerts in support of Hurricane Helene victims across the Southeastern United States.

Country and folk stars Luke Combs, Eric Church, James Taylor, and Billy Strings announced a benefit concert for North Carolina yesterday (7 October), set for 26 October at Charlotte’s 75,000-capacity Bank of America Stadium. Combs, Church, and Taylor are all natives, with Strings touring the state extensively.

Hurricane Helene ripped through parts of Florida, North and South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee in the final days of September, rapidly intensifying to become the deadliest hurricane since 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. Over 230 people have died across six states, with 117 of those being from North Carolina, per CNN.

Proceeds from tickets and sponsorships will be split evenly Combs’ choice of recipients, which includes two food banks, and Church’s Chief Cares Foundation, poised to support established aid organizations across the state and greater region.

Church spoke online about his motivation: “This is my home. It’s in every fibre of who I am. Our family members, friends, neighbours and communities are in dire need. I’m honored to share the stage with an incredible lineup in order to help meet those needs.”

The country star also released the song Darkest Hour on Friday (4 October) in response to the devastation, and will donate all publishing royalties.

Tickets will go on sale this Thursday, 10 October. An auction and raffle are also expected to take place, with details to be announced.

“If there’s anything I can do to give back in any way I can I’m always willing to do that”

American country artist Sturgill Simpson will also play in support of victims, with his 21 October show at Cary, N.C.’s Koka Booth Amphitheatre (7,000) to benefit the North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund.

Simpson was originally due to play Asheville’s ExploreAsheville.com Arena (7,200) as part of his 2024 fall tour but cancelled the show following extreme flooding across the city. He will now perform two nights in Cary, with tickets for the benefit show going on sale starting Thursday.

Asheville’s arena has also suspended live performances this month, cancelling stops from Ray Lamontagne & Gregory Alan Isakov, Knocked Loose, Goose, and others. It, among other venues like South Carolina’s Bon Secours Wellness Arena (15,000), has been utilised as shelter and gathering spaces for the communities affected.

Other artists are also pitching in. Tennessee native Dolly Parton announced a $1 million (£762k) donation for recovery efforts, which could reportedly take years.

“God has been good to me and so has the public, and I feel that if there’s anything I can do to give back in any way I can I’m always willing to do that. I want to feel like I’m doing my part,” Parton said in a press conference on Saturday (5 October).

Over the weekend, American hardcore band Converge released a live album in support of the victims, with all proceeds to be donated to Mutual Aid Disaster Relief.

Hurricane Helene also forced the cancellation of a series of events across the region, including the final days of both the debut edition of Alabama’s South Star Festival and Kentucky’s Louder Than Life. Impending storm Hurricane Milton, which has rapidly intensified to a Category 5 storm, is set to descend on Flordia in the coming days.

“Weather is getting more and more severe and you never know what is going to happen”

Severe weather has become an increasingly common issue in the live music ecosystem, with insurance premiums spiking as a result. Panellists at Croatia’s SHIP Conference spoke about the knock-on effects during a discussion about the financial impacts of weather last month.

“Weather is getting more and more severe and you never know what is going to happen. We just need to make sure we prepare ourselves the best we can in advance and assess it year by year,” said Barbora Bodnárová, booking manager at Pohoda Festival (SK). This year’s edition of the Slovakian festival was curtailed after a storm-induced tent collapse injured 29 attendees.

Parts of Europe are still reeling from the impacts of Storm Boris, which unleashed severe flooding across parts of Romania, Austria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary last month. Multiple gigs across the affected countries were cancelled as a result of the storm surge.

Last week, leading Austrain promoter Barracuda Music GmbH announced a benefit concert in support of the flooding victims, to take place at Wiener Neustadt’s Arena Nova (5,000). The event, scheduled for 26 October, will feature Austrian artists Seiler & Speer, Wanda, Christina Stürmer, and more.

All proceeds from the concert will be donated to Austria Helps Austria, with donations to be distributed among a handful of local aid organisations.

 


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Post Malone, Stevie Nicks to headline new US festival

Post Malone, Stevie Nicks and Noah Kahan are slated to headline the inaugural edition of Lovin’ Life music festival in the US next year.

The three-day event will take place in Charlotte, North Carolina, between 3–5 May, with 40 artists performing across three stages.

Mt. Joy, Dominic Fike, Young the Giant and Jessie Murph are also on the bill for the 30,000-capacity event at N Brevard St.

Lovin’ Life is promoted by Southern Entertainment (est. 1994) – the Charlotte-based company behind music festivals such as Carolina Country Music Fest in South Carolina and the Barefoot Country Music Fest in New Jersey.

Mt. Joy, Dominic Fike, Young the Giant and Jessie Murph are also on the bill for the 30,000-capacity event

“After producing events all over the East Coast, we’ve dreamt of bringing a major music festival to Charlotte, and the Lovin’ Life Music Fest is our passion project,” says Bob Durkin, co-founder and partner of Southern Entertainment. “We’re thrilled to support the ongoing effort to make our hometown of Charlotte a Music City in such a big way.”

Rob Pedlow, co-founder and partner at Southern Entertainment, adds: “Charlotte’s ready for its own signature event. Lovin’ Life will be our very own Charlotte-flavored Lollapalooza, a new economic engine for the Queen City creating jobs, supporting area nonprofits and drawing music enthusiasts from across the Carolinas and beyond.”

Tickets for Lovin’ Life range from US$269 for three-day general admission to $1,199 for three-day Super VIP.

 


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Two injured in shooting at Asian Doll gig

Two people were shot after a fight broke out at an Asian Doll concert at a college homecoming in North Carolina.

The incident took place during the US rapper’s set at Livingstone College in Salisbury at around 11pm on Saturday (15 October).

According to local police, a female victim received a graze wound and was treated and released from hospital, while a male victim was flown to Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center with a gunshot wound. His condition is listed as stable.

“The investigation up to this point indicates that there was no exchange of gunfire by those involved in the altercation”

“An altercation occurred on the campus of Livingstone College last night during its homecoming concert,” says a statement by Salisbury Police Department. “During the altercation, a person, who is not a student of Livingstone College, fired one or more shots. The investigation up to this point indicates that there was no exchange of gunfire by those involved in the altercation contrary to earlier rumours.”

Livingstone College president Dr Anthony Davis says the education facility is collaborating with law enforcement agencies on the investigation.

“Our priority is and remains to ensure the mental wellness of our students and to evaluate our public safety measures to create a safe, living, learning and working environment,” adds Davis. “I am saddened because our students, alumni, family and friends were exposed to this senseless act of violence. We are working collaboratively with our local law enforcement agencies as they are conducting a thorough investigation.”

 


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AI-powered screens detect mask wearing at venue

A North Carolina stadium is using artificial-intelligence (AI) technology to monitor for Covid-compliant public behaviour, such as social distancing and the wearing of face coverings, among fans arriving at the venue.

The 50,500-capacity Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, which is primarily used for American football, has installed ‘Health Greeter Kiosks’ to encourage anyone passing to wear masks and practice social distancing. The AI – specifically machine learning and computer vision – uses real-time data from a depth-sensing camera to detect if someone is wearing a mask and whether there is proper spacing between individuals. As people walk by the screens, a large display alerts them to either correct or continue their behaviour.

The technology was developed by the University of North Carolina’s Reese Innovation Lab, with support from Lenovo North America, and first deployed for an American football match (University of North Carolina vs Virginia Tech) on 10 October. The kiosks, which were placed at locations such as entrances, bag-check queues and ticket offices, “worked as intended, tracking and encouraging safe behaviour”, according to Lenovo.

“These kiosks will help us better understand human behaviour and encourage safe behaviour”

“We needed real innovation to meet this unprecedented challenge, and pushing the limits of technology is at the core of our lab’s mission,” says Steven King, chief innovation officer of Reese Innovation Lab. “Engineering a technological response to Covid-19 and event-attendance restarting is a real and rewarding challenge, [and] I’m grateful for the support of UNC-Chapel Hill leadership, our exceptional and inventive students and Lenovo.”

The kiosks, which use fully anonymised data, with no images saved or transmitted, may help shape safety protocol and provide insight on how crowds behave during the coronavirus pandemic, adds King.

“We see this as the starting point of wider deployment, with opportunities to refine and customise the technology,” he explains. “From campus hallways to outdoor events, these kiosks will help us better understand human behaviour and encourage safe behaviour, and I’m excited to see how we evolve and adapt this AI-powered solution.”

 


This article forms part of IQ’s Covid-19 resource centre – a knowledge hub of essential guidance and updating resources for uncertain times.

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HB2: Ringo Starr cancels North Carolina concert

Ringo Starr has become the latest artist to cancel a planned show in North Carolina in protest against the US state’s Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act, commonly known as House Bill 2 (HB2).

In a statement posted on his website, the former Beatles drummer says he cancelled his All Starr tour concert in Cary on 18 June in order to “take a stand against this hatred”. He adds: “Spread peace and love.”

HB2, also known as the ‘bathroom bill’, invalidates at a state-wide level several local anti-discrimination measures, and also compels transgender people to use public toilets that correspond to the sex listed on their birth certificates.

“We need to take a stand against this hatred. Spread peace and love”

Last week Bruce Springsteen also cancelled an appearance in Greensboro, North Carolina, in protest against HB2, which critics have called discriminatory against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. Bryan Adams, meanwhile, earlier this week called off a show at Mississippi Coast Coliseum following the passing of a law in that state also widely criticised as being anti-gay, Bill 1523, which allows religious groups and some private businesses to refuse service to gay people and anyone who offends their “sincerely held religious beliefs”.

Cyndi Lauper has also come out in opposition to HB2, announcing to ABC News that she donate all profits from her upcoming performance in Raleigh to Equality North Carolina’s campaign to repeal the law.

Springsteen, Bryan Adams first to cancel shows over anti-LGBT laws

Bruce Springsteen and Bryan Adams have become the first major touring artists to cancel concerts in protest against new ‘anti-gay’ laws in some southern US states.

Canadian singer-songwriter Adams (pictured) has called off his 14 April show at Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi following the signing into law of Mississippi bill 1523, which allows religious groups and some private businesses to refuse service to gay people and anyone who offends their “sincerely held religious beliefs”.

Adams said he can not “in good conscience” perform in a state where “certain people are being denied their civil rights due to their sexual orientation”.

New Jerseyan Springsteen cancelled an appearance in Greensboro, North Carolina, on Sunday in protest against the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act, which has also drawn condemnation from Barack Obama, American Airlines, PayPal, Apple, Google, Facebook, Twitter and the states of Connecticut, Minnesota, New York, Vermont and Washington, which have banned non-essential travel to North Carolina for public-sector employees.

Adams said he can not “in good conscience” perform in a state where “certain people are being denied their civil rights due to their sexual orientation”

The law invalidated at a state-wide level several local anti-discrimination measures, and also requires transgender people to use public toilets that correspond to the sex listed on their birth certificates.

In addition to negatively affecting the live music sector, the North Carolina law is already forcing major sporting events out of the state: National Basketball Association (NBA) commissioner Adam Silver announced yesterday that the city of Charlotte will no longer be allowed to host the 2017 NBA All-Star Game as, “with this new law in place, Charlotte currently does not have any anti-discrimination protection in place, something that would be vital for a large event such as the All-Star Game”.

Springsteen’s decision to cancel was called a “bully tactic” by North Carolina congressman Mark Walker. “It’s like when a kid gets upset and says he’s going to take his ball and go home,” Walker, a Republican, told The Hollywood Reporter.