US music community rallies around Hurricane Harvey victims

The US music community is rallying around victims of Hurricane Harvey (also referred to as Tropical Storm Harvey), which has devastated south Texas, south-western Louisiana and parts of the Bermuda Triangle.

At least 50 people have died and 87,500 homes flooded out or destroyed.

Initially local musicians were involved in assisting Houston residents who were stranded or in need of food and shelter after Harvey dropped 50 inches of rain.

But as it became clear that some of these areas would take years to get back normal, major names are moving to raise funds as quickly as possible.

In the latest move, Scooter Braun and Houston rapper Bun B will later this week announce a star-studded concert similar to the one that Braun pulled together in June for his client Ariana Grande in Manchester.

The plan is for it to be televised on four America-wide television networks.

Reese Witherspoon and Blake Shelton will host the event from Nashville, Texas natives Jamie Foxx and Hilary Duff will anchor from Los Angeles, and former NFL player Good Morning America’s Michael Strahan.

Braun also manages Justin Bieber, Kanye West, Usher and Tori Kelly.

The highly respected Bun B is close friends with one time Houston resident Beyonce (who has already made “a significant donation” while her BeyGOOD foundation set up a donation page to Houston charities Bread for Life and Greater Houston Community Foundation), and worked with Jay-Z and Outkast.

Drake threw in $200,000 and plans more projects with other stars when he returns to the U.S.

In an emotional post he wrote: “We are currently overseas in London and all I can think about is how devastated I am as I look at images of the damage Hurricane Harvey has caused.

“I am praying for the safety of all those affected. Houston has truly been a home to me over the last 8 years.”

Other initiatives include:

• Husband and wife team Edie Brickell and Paul Simon are donating $1 million, asking that their money got to help smaller towns in the area surrounding Houston, with medical emergencies and restoration of homes given top priority
• Actors Sandra Bullock and Leonardo DiCaprio donated $1 million apiece
• Festivals in Texas have set up donation pages and introduced more expensive “relief passes” for those who want to contribute.
• MusiCares teamed up with Houston’s Guitar Centre to launch an initiative to “help impacted musicians, songwriters, recording studios, and audio professionals re-build their lives.”
• J.J. Watt of the NFL’s Houston Texans raised $21 million. He initially had a target of $200,000.
• Kevin Hart notched up $800,000 after issuing Hurricane Harvey Relief Challenge, asking The Kardashian Family, Nicki Minaj, Jennifer Lopez, Chris Rock, Jay-Z, Dave Chappelle, Jerry Seinfeld, Steve Harvey, Justin Timberlake Alex Rodriguez, DJ Khaled, T.I., Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and The Chainsmokers to donate.
• Miley Cyrus announced a $500,000 donation through her Happy Hippie Foundations, Chris Brown gave $100,000 while Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas and DNCE are promoting donations to the Houston Food Bank.
• Plans for 10 venues to simultaneously hold benefits on one night in late October (all ten said yes within 10 minutes of being asked) have now swelled to 20 venues and over two nights. Organisers are expecting 50 venues to join by then.
• Lady Antebellum are donating proceeds from the merch sales in Dallas to relief efforts., while Florida Georgia Line collected money at their Nashville bar.
• Incubus will donate proceeds from their recent Houston Make Yourself Foundation event to relief efforts. Additionally fans who donate go into a lottery to win the charge to meet the band.
• Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus is offering Blink-related merch to those who take or donate clothes to the Southside Skate Park in Houston.
• Country star Miranda Lambert’s MuttNation Foundation gave shelter to 70 stranded dogs in the Houston area.
• President Donald Trump who visited Houston victims twice, has donated $1 million from his own pocket and plans to get Congress to approve a $8 billion relief fund.