Guy Sebastian and Delta to host with Tones and I joining the line-up for Music From The Homefront concert
The Australian and NZ music communities have united for a historic live-streaming concert on ANZAC Day to pay tribute to our soldiers and those fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The Music From The Homefront concert on ANZAC night will be hosted by The Voice coaches Guy Sebastian and Delta Goodrem.
Sebastian, who cut his teeth hosting the ARIA Awards last year, is also going to perform on the show.
INXS’s Andrew Farriss, Archie Roach, Bliss N Eso, Diesel, Emma Donovan, Jack River, John Schumann & the Vagabond Crew, Jon Stevens, Lee Kernaghan, Lime Cordiale, Tones And I, Troy Cassar-Daley and Vince Harder have also been added to Saturday’s lineup.
A couple of big all-star performances are expected to feature during the show to honour our servicemen and women and pay tribute to those frontline COVID-19 workers, including Kernaghan’s Spirit of the ANZACs.
While the timing of the broadcast doesn’t work for Kylie Minogue in lockdown in London, to record a performance, she will be sending a special message.
Other hosts during the evening will be Today Extra’s David Campbell and ARN radio personality Christian O’Connell.
On Thursday, the line-up was swelled by Mahalia Barnes joining her father Jimmy for the concert with pop siblings Amy and George Sheppard, Dean Lewis, James Reyne, Mark Seymour, indie rockers DMA’s, Hayley Mary (The Jezabels), jazz legend James Morrison, opera star Jessica Hitchcock, Shane Howard, Tim Minchin and indigenous didgeridoo player also announced for the Saturday night event.
Jimmy Barnes has been instrumental to helping bring together the cast of Australian and New Zealand musicians for Music From The Home Front and workshopping the setlist and line-ups.
The live television event on ANZAC Day from 7.30pm will feature performances from Ben Lee, Birds Of Tokyo with West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Courtney Barnett, Dave Dobbyn, Delta Goodrem, G Flip, Ian Moss, Kevin Parker (Tame Impala), Marlon Williams, Missy Higgins, Paul Kelly, The Rubens, The Wiggles, Vance Joy and Vika and Linda Bull from their homes or other safe spaces.
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Mushroom Group chairman Michael Gudinski and Barnes have scrambled over the past 10 days to organise the concert for the music community to “pay its respects and celebrate the mateship between two great neighbouring nations” and send a big thank you to healthcare workers, retail staff and others on the coronavirus frontlines.
“Throughout history music has helped people through times of hardship,” Gudinski said.
“Music From The Home Front is about uniting Australian and New Zealanders through the power of music in a time that we all need a bit of hope and happiness.”
Gudisnki said he had taken note of Global Citizen’s epic One World: Together At Home and his ANZAC show would be pushing the boundaries of the available broadcasting technology to allow for unexpected collaborations.
He said Barnes had been instrumental in helping plan the setlist for the show which will be a mix of classic ANZAC themed songs and uplifting pop and rock favourites.
There will be a special version of the iconic Redgum song I Was Only 19 and the show will open with a celebrity “choir” singing Ben Lee’s We’re All In This Together, which has become a part of the Australian pandemic soundtrack.
Fans can submit them singing the song until 6pm on Friday via musicfromthehomefront.com.au/choir
“We’ll be hooking Ben in from LA and he will be joined by at least six guests singers,” Gudinski said.
He said only a handful of the performances on Saturday would be live with the majority recorded by artists in their homes – or home studios.
“ We will be able to connect some people home to home,” the promoter said.
It is expected eight to 10 songs will be streamed via online platforms ahead of the official concert broadcast which kicks off at 7.30pm.
RSL Australia said of Music From The Home Front: “In times when the same spirit
that underpinned the Anzac tradition is combating the COVID-19 menace, the RSL
is proud to be associated with this fabulous initiative.”
Gudinski stressed Music From The Homefront is not a telethon but the concert would seek to help “look after some of the crew people” who have lost jobs because of the pandemic.
Organisers said on Thursday artists will be paid a fee in respect of their time and
their costs.
Some artists have already declared they plan to pass the fee “onto their bands and crew or organisations such as music industry charities Support Act (Australia) or MusicHelpsLive (New Zealand).”
“Music From The Home Front will also have information running throughout the evening on ways viewers can support the RSL, Support Act and MusicHelpsLive if household budgets allow,” a statement announced on Thursday.
Despite the artistic community being among the hardest hit by the shutdowns of mass gathering to halt the spread of the coronavirus, they have rallied to keep spirits high and raise funds for those struggling financially during the self-isolation period.
Barnes and his wife Jane have been wildly entertaining – and emotionally moving – with their nightly performances of a vast repertoire of songs from Unchained Melody to Danny Boy.
Keith Urban and Delta Goodrem were among the world’s most famous artists to perform during Sunday’s One World: Together At Home event.
And dozens of Australian musicians including John Butler, Josh Pyke, Alex The Astronaut, Montaigne, Tim Rogers and Paul Dempsey have joined the successful online “festivals” Isol-Aid and Delivered Live over the past month.
Music From The Homefront will be broadcast on Nine from 7.30pm.