All-star Avicii tribute concert set for December

David Guetta, Kygo, Rita Ora and Adam Lambert lead a line-up of international dance and pop stars for a tribute to Avicii, the late Swedish EDM great.

The Avicii Tribute Concert for Mental Health Awareness will take place Dec. 5 at the Friends Arena in Stockholm, Avicci’s hometown, with all net profits from it supporting organisations which tackle mental health awareness, suicide prevention and education.

Also on the night, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Laidback Luke and Nicky Romero will play DJ sets, while longtime collaborator Aloe Blacc, Alex Ebert, Amanda Wilson and others singers who will pay their respects to the ‘Levels’ producer by performing his works live with a 30-piece ensemble.

The benefit concert, announced overnight, is produced by the non-profit foundation carrying Avicii’s name, Tim Bergling, who died April 20, 2018 of an apparent suicide, aged 28.

“Tim had plans for his music to be performed together with a large live band, and now we are realizing his dream and giving fans a chance to experience his music in this unique way,” says Klas Bergling, Tim’s father and co-founder of the foundation with Anki Lidén, the late musician’s mother.

Avicii, ‘Levels’

A posthumous Avicii album Tim arrived in June and opened at No. 6 on the ARIA Albums Chart.

Avicii jointly holds the record for the longest stint at No. 1 on the ARIA Singles Chart for a Swedish artist with 2013’s ‘Wake Me Up’ featuring Aloe Blacc, which ruled the survey for six weeks (Roxette’s ‘The Look’ also led the chart for six weeks).

The following year, Avicii hit No. 1 Down Under with his debut album, True.

Avicii, ‘Wake Me Up’

Proceeds from Tim and other Avicii projects will be directed to the Tim Bergling Foundation, which also benefits wildlife conservation and other issues that the Grammy-nominated artist had an interest in and passion for.

“We are grateful that his friends, producers, artists and colleagues are coming to Stockholm to help,” Klas Bergling added, ahead of the fundraising concert. “They have all expressed a sincere interest and desire to engage in efforts to stem the tide of mental illness and lend their support to our work with the Tim Bergling Foundation. We are very much looking forward to this evening, which will be a starting point for the foundation’s work going forward.”

He added, “every year around 1,500 people take their own lives in Sweden and globally up to one million. It is a tragedy that affects families, communities and with long-term effects on relatives who live on in grief. It is a global crisis and the second most common cause of death among young people aged 15-29 [according to the World Health Organization]. We want this concert to help put the topic on the agenda and pay attention to the stigma surrounding mental illness and suicide. Policies and tools are needed to detect the risks and prevent suicide, especially among young people.”

Tickets for the Avicii tribute concert will go on sale this Thursday (Sept. 5). Click here for more.

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.