Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Black Keys, Neil Young, Foo Fighters to Play Central Park Charity Concert

By Dan Rivoli | August 7, 2012 1:35pm
Patrick Carney, left, and Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys perform during the All Points West music festival at Liberty State Park Sunday, Aug. 2, 2009, in Jersey City, N.J.
Patrick Carney, left, and Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys perform during the All Points West music festival at Liberty State Park Sunday, Aug. 2, 2009, in Jersey City, N.J.
View Full Caption
AP/Jason DeCrow

NEW YORK CITY — Rockers Neil Young, The Black Keys and Foo Fighters are set to headline a concert in Central Park next month to help raise awareness of global poverty.

But unlike other star-studded benefit shows, the advocacy will be done without a single note being played.

Fans can only get tickets to the Global Festival 2012 on Central Park’s Great Lawn by entering a lottery through signing petitions, calling elected officials in Congress, or using social media to share a video on extreme poverty.

“We wanted to show how fighting poverty is going to take more than just our donations, it’s going to take our voices, calling on our governments and businesses to do their bit for the world’s poor,” said Simon Moss, a co-founder of Global Poverty Project, an advocacy group organizing the concert.

Global Festival, which is scheduled for Sept. 29, will distribute 54,000 tickets to those who rack up enough points through the Global Poverty Project’s Global Citizen website. The more a person pushes a message of ending extreme poverty, the better their chances of scoring a ticket.

Hugh Evans, co-founder of the Global Poverty Project, told the Associated Press the concert aims to produce 100,000 actions by September and raise $500 million through commitments from world leaders who will be gathered in New York. The concert is scheduled to take place at the end of the first week of the United Nations General Assembly.

Other acts that donated time to the benefit show include Band of Horses and Canadian songwriter K’naan.