Second Live Earth concert returning to Sydney

Former US Vice President Al Gore is staging the global Live Earth series of concerts to raise environmental awareness – and Sydney is one of the cities to host Live Earth Road To Paris on June 18.

The first Live Earth was held on July 7, 2007, when Madonna, The Police, Pharrell Williams, Kanye West, Beastie Boys, Linkin Park, Black Eyed Peas, Alicia Keys, Bon Jovi, Angélique Kidjo, Rihanna, Snoop Dogg, Genesis, Shakira and UB40 played at 11 shows across the world. The global telecast drew 8 million online viewers across 130 countries – a record at that time.

The Sydney nine-hour carbon-neutral event was organised by Chugg Entertainment, IMC and Mark Pope Music and held at Sydney Football Stadium before 45,000. Acts that played included Crowded House, Jimmy Barnes, Paul Kelly, Jack Johnson, Wolfmother, John Butler Trio, Missy Higgins, Eskimo Joe, Sneaky Sound System and Blue King Brown. It was broadcast on Channel [V] and MAX and streamed on MSN and ninemsn.

This year, 100 acts will play in Beijing, Sydney, New York, Paris, Johannesburg and Sao Paulo and globally viewed on a number of platforms. There will also be an event in Antarctica to ensure that seven continents are covered. It will be the first major music event since Metallica played there in 2013. Each concert will last between four to six hours.

Pharrell Williams is serving as Creative Director, and will help Gore and his partner in the venture, TV producer and activist Kevin Wall, choose the acts. Williams wouldn’t divulge who they might be, except to say: “There’ll be some interesting surprises.” Williams added, “Instead of just having people perform, we literally are going to have humanity harmonise all at once.”

The whole idea of Live Earth 2015 is to urge world leaders to approve a new climate accord at Paris' United Nations Climate Change Conference, beginning November 30.

"The purpose is to have a billion voices with one message, to demand climate action now," Gore told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 for his climate change efforts.