Beginning Jan. 7 until Jan. 31, a series of five fires in Palisades, Alta Dena, Hurst, Kenneth, Hughes, and Border 2 spread rapidly. According to ABC News, an American television network, 29 people died in the fire and over 57,000 acres of land burned, forcing over 180,000 people to evacuate.
As the victims recover, organizations such as the American Red Cross and the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation have provided evacuation centers and donations to support affected communities. In addition, music artists participated in the FireAid Benefit Concert organized by Irving Azoff, Ticketmaster’s former chief executive officer. 100% of the ticket proceeds were donated to FireAid relief efforts.
Performances took place at the Kia Forum on Jan. 30 with 14 acts and the other 13 at the Intuit Dome, both located in Inglewood, Calif. The Kia Forum concert was at 6:00 P.M and the Intuit Dome concert at 7:00 P.M. According to Today, a news broadcast that provides current and international news, the Los Angeles FireAid concerts consisted of 27 musical performances organized to raise money for victims.
Headlining the show at the Kia Forum was the band No Doubt, led by singer-songwriter and fashion designer Gwen Stefani. Alongside them, other performers included rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers, singer-songwriters Stevie Nicks and P!nk, singer and rapper Anderson .Paak with rapper and music producer Dr. Dre, and many more.
On the same day, the other performances held at the Intuit Dome were from singer-songwriters Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Gracie Abrams and Katy Perry, singer and rapper Lil Baby, singer-songwriter and actress Lady Gaga, Mexican singer and musician Peso Pluma, singer-songwriter and musician Stevie Wonder, and others.
With concerts set at two different locations on the same day, many people like junior Isabella Mera believed it was inconvenient to those who wished to watch all the performers but still found it an effective way to raise money for the victims.
“I think they should’ve had it in one place cause there was a bunch of artists… but I think that’s cool that they had like these wealthy people who donated a bunch of money like, all of it’s for a good cause,” said Mera.
According to the Los Angeles Times, an American daily newspaper, not only were some performers there to perform and fund relief efforts for the city’s victims, but they were personally affected. Katy Perry was accompanied by the Pasadena Chorale, a community choir who presents affordable choir concerts, after their main performing platform the Altadena Community Church burned down and two members of the rock band Dawes were also victims of the fires and lost their home and studio.
Around 50 million people attended the charity event to help support victims, making others like junior Jaelynn Quinones want to attend similar events.
“I think more organizations should like, do that and like more artists should come together and do more concerts like that… I would definitely go to them,” said Quinones.
According to KTLA 5, a source for California’s news, tickets to attend the shows went on sale a week before on Jan. 22 with prices starting at $99. All proceeds from the ticket purchases would go to benefiting the FireAid relief efforts with all service and venue fees being waived.
For people unable to attend the concerts, they were still able to contribute to the fundraiser from their homes.
The concerts were broadcasted on major streaming platforms such as Netflix, Youtube, Apple Music and TV, Disney+, Hulu, and Prime Video. iHeartRadio was also a major broadcaster, providing over 600 of their radios to broadcast the performances.
With the combination of all ticket purchases from both of the venues along with contributing donors, such as the Eagles, a National Football League team, and the rock band U2, the FireAid organization made over $100 million in donations and is expected to surpass that number as people continue to donate.
The FireAid organization continues to dedicate themselves to reaching out to the community and urging civilians to help provide support for those harmed by the fires. Alongside the concerts, people continue to organize events and donations to help gather funds to support those in need.
