HURRICANE SANDY RELIEF CONCERT ‘121212’ ROCKS THE WORLD
By: Hope Wilkos, Writer/Blogger Photographer: George Whylie Videographer: Maxine NolanThere could be no more fitting venue to hold such a powerful and charitable event than Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Some of the biggest names in the music industry came together to raise funds to assist the victims of “Superstorm” Sandy on December 12, 2012. This was the Sandy Relief ‘121212’ Concert. Proceeds from the show will be distributed through the Robin Hood Foundation. Over $30 million was raised just from ticket sales alone. It is difficult to quantify the destruction of this hurricane but it caused 125 deaths and destroyed or damaged 305,000 housing units in New York.
With the reality of the devastation on the big screen in the background and heartfelt speeches that painfully caused us to relive some of the moments, the arena came alive with the most monumental concert of the century. For six hours, the crowds rocked to the sounds of a superstar lineup.
Paul McCartney, Roger Daltrey and The Who, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Roger Waters, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Billy Joel, Bon Jovi, Eddie Vedder, Dave Grohl, Kanye West, Alicia Keys and Chris Martin of Coldplay made the evening memorable. Some humor was thrown in as Jon Stewart, Adam Sandler, Jimmy Fallon, Billy Crystal, Chris Rock and Stephen Colbert all made guest appearances and lightened the emotions of the evening.
It was a sold-out show and was televised, streamed online, shown at movie theaters and aired on the radio for the world to enjoy and take part in.
Many of these gifted artists call New York City and the surrounding area their home so this was a real treat to be able to give of themselves. Many were affected in some way by the storm.
Bruce Springsteen sang “My City of Ruins”, “Land of Hope and Dreams”, and “Wrecking Ball”. Springsteen and Bon Jovi united to sing an all-time favorite “Born To Run” and then “Who Says You Can’t Go Home.”
The Rolling Stones briefly hit the stage for a couple of their iconic songs, “You’ve Got Me Rockin” and “Jumping Jack Flash”.
The Who took us back in time as they sang “Pinball Wizard” and changed the lyrics from “teenage wasteland” to “Sandy wasteland”.
The evening definitely wouldn’t have been complete without Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind”.
Fans were on the edge of their seats awaiting Paul McCartney who appeared as the clock struck midnight but he was well worth the wait. He teamed up with some of Nirvana for a brand new song. His performance was electrified just like a bolt of lightning on a summer evening.
Michael Stipe and Chris Martin joined in song for “Losing My Religion”.
In addition to musicians, many celebrities and models felt inclined to do their part for such a worthwhile cause. Chelsea Clinton, Kristen Stewart, Brian Williams, Whoopi Goldberg, Olivia Wilde, Steve Buscemi, Seth Meyers and Bobby Moynihan, Jake Gyllenhaal, P. Diddy, Blake Lively, Katie Holmes, Jason Sudeikis, Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio (via video), Susan Sarandon, Martha Stewart, Karlie Kloss and Joan Smalls were all part of the action-packed evening of entertainment.
It was a night to open our hearts and our wallets for those who need it the most. It isn’t too late to make a donation. You can visit www.121212concert.org.
At 1:30 a.m. EST, the concert wrapped up as all the artists and musicians came back on stage like one big family to sing “Empire State of Mind” led by Alicia Keys. The entire concert will be available on iTunes soon and pre-orders are being taken now. As many said last night, “Lets bring back the New York that we all know.”
PHOTO CREDITS: Dave Allocca/Starpix/AP Photo and Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images
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