The “12.12.12” Sandy Relief Concert Takes Place Wednesday Night
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Facebook.com/121212Concert(NEW YORK) — 12.12.12 — The Concert for Sandy Relief, the star-packed benefit for the victims of the massive storm that recently battered the northeastern U.S., takes place Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The show’s lineup features quite a few celebrities who hail from some the areas hit hardest by the storm, including Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi and Billy Joel.
In conjunction with promoting the charity event, the famed musicians discussed some of the devastation they witnessed near their hometowns and why it’s so important for people to support the victims of the storm.
Springsteen, who is from New Jersey’s coastal region shore, points out, “The size of the destruction was shocking, and it took days and days to even understand the level of destruction that occurred along the Jersey shore.”
He also stresses, “What makes a place that place is a fragile thing very often. Trying to maintain that part of what the Jersey coast was about is important. I wouldn’t want to see that part of it and that life disappear.”
Like the Boss, Bon Jovi was raised, and still lives, near the Jersey shore. The singer declares, “There have been hurricanes, there have been storms, but I’ve never seen anything remotely close to what Hurricane Sandy was.”
He notes that while the storm only lasted one day, its effects “are gonna last a lifetime.” Bon Jovi adds that, on the positive side, “In our time of need, people come together in a way that is unique to who and what we are, and I love that.”
Joel, meanwhile, lives along the coast of Long Island, N.Y. He says about the effects of Sandy: “Emotionally it hurts to see all the terrible things that happened because of this storm, all the lives that were disrupted, all the damage that was done…People were stranded. People died. I’m proud to be [a Long] Islander, and to see something like this happen is devastating.”
As previously reported, the 12.12.12 concert will feature performances by Springsteen and his E Street Band, Bon Jovi’s namesake group and Joel, as well as Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, The Who, Roger Waters, Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder, Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl and more.
The show, which gets under way at 7:30 p.m. ET, will air live on various TV stations across the globe and will stream on select websites. In addition, a free simulcast of the concert will be held in a number of movie theaters in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, while paid screenings will take place in other parts of the U.S. to raise additional funds for the cause.
Proceeds from the 12.12.12 concert and album will benefit the Robin Hood Relief Fund, which is providing money, materials and information to charitable organizations in the northeastern U.S. that are helping families and areas severely affected by the storm.
Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio