U2 to donate €2 million from Irish gigs

It's a great day for U2 fans in Ireland, the band have put an end to rumours and speculation and confirmed they will play in both Dublin and Belfast this November.

It's been a saga of will they, won't they, for the past number of weeks and due to the sheer scale of their iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE tour, there was a real danger U2 where not going to play any live shows in Ireland this year.

Over the weekend The Edge addressed the speculation and assured fans they were doing everything in their power to take their world tour to Ireland and insisted it would be a "huge disappointment" if  it did not happen.
They band have been very vocal that their iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE tour is only suitable for particular types of venues which gave fear to fans that it would not fit in any indoor arena south of the Irish border.

The Edge added: "This show is designed for a type of venue and unfortunately there isn't one, certainly in the south. I think there might be one in the Belfast area, so we're looking at that as well.

"But you can't invent a venue. It's either there or it isn't. So, we're doing a lot of head-scratching right now to see if we can figure out something."

But now it seems all logistical and staging issues have been surmounted and Bono, The Edge, Larry Mullen and Adam Clayton will take to the stage in Dublin and Belfast this coming November.

The band will play in the SSE Arena in Belfast on 18 and 19 November before four nights at the 3Arena in Dublin on the 23, 24, 27 and 28 November.

The band has announced that €2,000,000 from the concerts will go to Music Generation, Ireland's national music education programme.

Its director, Rosaleen Molloy, said:  "Music Generation would not exist without U2's vision. It was the band's very own personal experience of music education as children and teenagers that has driven their commitment to kick-start this ground breaking project."

"We are extremely grateful to the band for their continued support of children and young people's access to music education in Ireland and we welcome this announcement with enthusiasm and excitement."

http://www.rte.ie/

Hang out with Bono backstage and help RED

Hang out with Bono backstage, where he’ll give you his (RED) Gretsch guitar!Plus flights, hotel, and VIP tickets for two.Every entry helps fight AIDS with (RED)

(EN) In an effort to support (RED)'s fight to deliver an AIDS free generation, I'm offering the chance to come to a U2 concert, meet me backstage, and I will give you a guitar. The guitar is yours to keep. Any songs you write with it are yours to keep. I will even sign the guitar in case you want to hang it over the mantel or use it as collateral in a card game.To collect the guitar, you will come backstage at one of our shows and be ushered past the diplomats, journalists, fashion models, economists, talk show hosts and actors and straight to my secret rendezvous room where we will toast each other and I will hand over the guitar. All those VIP’s will want to know why YOU got to cut the line. I won’t tell them if you don’t. To add to the excitement, I’m not going to tell Adam, Edge and Larry about this contest. When you show up, I’m going to tell them that you are a United Nations ambassador and they should address you as “Your excellency.” Let’s see if they fall for that one again.

Donate here.

http://www.omaze.com/

Bono Talks at the Pat Kenny Show

U2 frontman praises coalition for economic efforts

Bono's been paying tribute to the efforts of the Taoiseach and Finance Minister to promote Ireland at the World Economic Forum.

He's among 2 and a half thousand delegates including heads of state and business leaders gathered at Davos in Switzerland for the annual event.

The U2 frontman joined an event last night where the IDA had potential investors in their sights in the areas of pharmaceutical, technology and financial services.

Bono said this morning that Enda Kenny and Michael Noonan impressed those gathered at the dinner. He also talked about "Invisible" the new U2 song that will be available for free download for 24 hours only (1st Feb) and every time the track is downloaded a $1 donation  will be made to (RED) by Bank of America (All the funds will go to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. )

Bono also announced that this song will be part of the upcoming album.
You can listen to the podcast online here.

http://www.newstalk.ie/

Happy Birthday,Bono!!!

The best of the best for the great musician, singer, lyricist ,
humanitarian!!! Happy Birthday ,Bono, wherever you are!!!

To celebrate his 53rd birthday, you can colaborate with  

Celebrity Doodles to Raise Money for Birthday AWF Project

As part of its 10th Annual Build a Well for Bono's Birthday Fundraiser, the African Well Fund is auctioning drawings by celebrities including George Clooney, Elvis Costello and Anton Corbijn to raise money to fund a water, sanitation and hygiene project in Burkina Faso that will be implemented by African Well Fund partner Africare and aims to create a healthy environment for 257 schoolchildren. The auction will run May 5-12 on eBay.

"Bono has inspired so many people to care about Africa and its people, not just U2 fans like us, but also his many famous friends and fans," said Abbey Fisher, doodle project coordinator. "We wanted to do something special to honor Bono and celebrate the 10th Annual Build a Well for Bono's Birthday fundraiser, so our board president, Rob Trigalet, had a great idea for us to ask Bono's celebrity friends and fans to draw a doodle, either of Bono or of an image reflecting his work throughout the African continent. We have gotten a great response, and I am thrilled with the doodles we've received so far from celebrities like George Clooney, Elvis Costello and Anton Corbijn. It shows us that people really want to help those who go without clean water and sanitation on a daily basis, and it's a great opportunity to reach new supporters for our lifesaving projects."


From World Water Day, March 22nd, through Bono's birthday, May 10th, AWF is inviting U2 fans and others who are inspired by Bono's tireless activism on behalf of Africa to make a donation through the organization's website in honor of his 52nd birthday. AWF is also raising funds by selling limited-edition prints through its website and T-shirts through its Zazzle store. All donors are invited to add their names and birthday wishes to a card on the African Well Fund website that will be sent to Bono in care of Principle Management.

For more information on the Burkina Faso project, click here.

Donations from the nine previous Build a Well for Bono's Birthday fundraisers have totaled more than $213,000 and have been used to fund clean water and sanitation projects implemented by AWF partner Africare to benefit more than 56,000 people in Angola, Benin, Liberia, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

http://www.africanwellfund.org

Adam Clayton supports Walk in my Shoes

Get Involved!!


Join Imelda May and U2’s Adam Clayton and support mental health services for young adults in Ireland on April 26th!


What can I do? click here.   Donate.

Edge Joins the Stand Up to Cancer TV Event

DAZZLING ARRAY OF STARS TO LIGHT UP STAND UP TO CANCER SEPTEMBER 10TH BROADCAST

Among others Edge will appear as musical guest for Stand Up To Cancer telethon. The one-hour event is scheduled for September 10th at 8:00 pm ET/PT and will be aired on all major U.S. TV networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX) and many cable networks, too, in 195 countries.
Other musicians scheduled to perform include: Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day,Neil Diamond,Delta Goodrem, Herbie Hancock, Kris Kristofferson, Lady Antebellum, Leona Lewis, Orianthi and Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson of Heart. These artists join previously announced performers including Natasha Bedingfield, Martina McBride, Aaron Neville, Dave Stewart and Stevie Wonder.

“Plain and simple, cancer takes too much from us,” said Laura Ziskin, SU2C co-founder and executive producer of the September 10th broadcast, who is a cancer survivor.
“Loved ones lost to it, pain and suffering endured by those in treatment, even the recent report that cancer has the most devastating economic impact of any cause of death…this disease exacts a very high price.
We want people all over the country to rise up and say, ‘ENOUGH!’
“Tune in on Sept. 10th to see your favorite stars, who’ll ask, ‘Will you stand up with us?’
Person by person, saying ‘yes’ moves us toward a goal completely within our grasp: a world without cancer.
A donation of any size brings scientists one step closer to a cure," Ziskin said.

Stand Up To Cancer says that one hundred percent of the donations at next week's fund raiser will go directly to cancer research.

Get Involved-This is where the end of cancer begins

Chile's children reeling after massive quake - Your help needed today

Save the Children is readying to send its emergency assessment team to Chile, site of a massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake early this morning.

The quake struck near Chile's second-largest city, Concepción, and has caused extensive damage. The capital Santiago, about 200 miles north of the epicentre, was also badly hit. Powerful aftershocks continue.

The president has declared an "area of ecocatastrophe."

"Any disaster increases the vulnerability of children. And we know from experience that an earthquake of this enormity — with widespread destruction of homes, schools, infrastructure and piece of mind — will put thousands of children at risk," said Charles MacCormack, Save the Children's president and CEO. "It is critical to reach affected children and families now in the early hours and meet their immediate survival needs. At the same time, we must also ensure that children, because they are at greater risk, are protected and nurtured as their country begins the difficult relief and recovery process."

What You Can Do

You can help Save the Children respond to emergencies around the world that put at risk the survival, protection, and well-being of significant numbers of children. By contributing to our Children's Emergency Fund, you enable us to prepare and respond immediately to children and families who urgently need our help when disasters strike.

Donate to the Children's Emergency Fund

Save the Children also is conducting a major relief and recovery effort in Haiti, which was struck more than six weeks ago. The agency has reached more than 500,000 people with lifesaving food, clean water, shelter, and health and nutrition programs.

Thank you on behalf of the children,

HAITI NEEDS YOUR HELP RIGHT NOW!

Haitian-born rap star Wyclef Jean has urged fans to donate to relief efforts in the wake of the huge earthquake that struck the Caribbean state on Tuesday.

"Your money will help with relief efforts," he wrote on micro-blogging site Twitter. "They need our help - please help if you can."

The former Fugees star has since said he is now on his way to the Caribbean state, via the Dominican Republic.

"Pray for the people of Haiti [and] me please," he posted.

Jean, 37, was made a roving ambassador for Haiti in 2007 and provides humanitarian aid and assistance through his Yele Haiti foundation.

'Unprecedented proportion'

Thousands are feared dead after the 7.0-magnitude quake, which struck south of the capital, Port-au-Prince, on Tuesday.

On his website, Jean said Haiti had suffered "a natural disaster of unprecedented proportion... unlike anything the country has ever experienced.

"I cannot stress enough what a human disaster this is, and idle hands will only make this tragedy worse."

The singer, who gained fame as a member of hip-hop trio The Fugees, was born in Haiti in 1972 but moved with his family to New York when he was nine.

To donate, click here: To see Wyclef´s website, click here.

source:http://news.bbc.co.uk//www.wyclef.com/

Music Rising, Rising Again!

'Music Rising', the campaign, in which Edge has been a prime mover, dedicated to preserving the rich musical heritage of the Gulf Coast region has new look.

As well as the soundtrack of New Orleans, the site has some fine photography of the milestones in the campaign so far: from U2 and Green Day performing 'The Saints Are Coming' at the reopening of the Louisiana Superdome to Edge visiting the devastation in the region not long after Katrina hit.

In case you're new to Music Rising, it was launched to 'rescue the musical culture of the Central Gulf region of the United States from the destruction caused by the catastrophic hurricanes of the summer of 2005 by replacing the musical instruments lost or destroyed in the deluge.'



For more info, here.
Donations here.

source:www.u2.com//www.musicrising.org