U2

September 14, 2006 01:49 PM
by Tjames Madison
LiveDaily Contributor
Irish rockers U2 (music) and California punk-popsters Green Day (music) will team up Sept. 26 to help launch the reopening of the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans before a live television audience.
The pairing, part of the Music Rising campaign which seeks to bring music back to the hurricane- and flood-ravaged Gulf Coast, will take place before ESPN's Monday Night Football game between the Atlanta Falcons and the New Orleans Saints.
The Superdome became a symbol of Hurricane Katrina in the early days following the natural disaster, when chaotic scenes from the ruined stadium--used controversially as an overcrowded relief shelter--were broadcast around the world. The NFL game will be the first official event held in the stadium since the facility's extensive renovation over the last year.
ESPN will air the U2 and Green Day live performances in their entirety during the cable network's Monday Night Football pre-game show.
"My visits to New Orleans gave me a firsthand look at the devastation which tragically destroyed the lives of thousands. The area's rich and spirited culture must continue to be restored," U2 guitarist The Edge said in a press release.
"Providing musical instruments through Music Rising will not only help the professional musicians but all the churches and schools in need through phase two of the program. Music Rising is dedicated to helping regain a foothold on their future but will also ensure that one of the Gulf Coast's greatest assets, its music, will rise again."
The performance will inaugurate Music Rising Phase II, in which the relief organization--formed late last year by The Edge, producer Bob Ezrin, and Gibson Guitar Chairman and CEO Henry Juszkiewicz--plans to provide musical instruments to churches and schools in the region. The main thrust of the campaign so far has been in providing assistance to thousands of musicians in the region whose livelihood was threatened by the disaster and its effect on the local music industry.
"One year later, people continue to be devastated by Katrina's effects," Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong said in the press release. "We hope that by collaborating with U2, we'll remind the public that people of the Gulf Coast are still suffering and still need help to rebuild their lives. The Edge and Music Rising are providing support to schools, churches and musicians who lost everything in the storm, including their ability to make a living. We are honored to be asked and proud to be part of that."