“A strong need for our community to come together”: Star studded line up set for special Lismore concert
“A strong need for our community to come together”: Star studded line up set for Lismore concert. Read the details inside.
Lismore
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The city of Lismore is set to celebrate its resilience in style when some of the biggest names in the Australian music industry arrive for a free concert in May.
Lismore showground will play host to a stellar lineup including The Buckleys, Darlinghurst, Paul and Dan Kelly, Daryl Braithwaite, Sheppard, Lime Cordiale, Jon Stevens and homegrown Lismore band, Grinspoon.
Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg said cleaning up after a flood can be isolating, and Anzac Day highlighted the community’s need to get together
“To have the opportunity to come together as a community on the May 15 is really a thank you for and from the people of Lismore,” Mr Krieg said.
The new council had been brainstorming ideas on how to lift the mood of the city.
“One of Council’s team reached out to Rick Sleeman from Sports Marketing Australia.,” Mr Krieg said.
Rick Sleeman from Sports Marketing Australia said the idea “grew legs quickly” after talks with Lismore council who wanted an event that would lift local spirits.
Not a fundraiser but a “significant and authentic” event that would shift the towns energy from shock to hope.
“The obvious go-to person was Chuggi,” Mr Sleeman said.
Michael Chugg, of Chugg Entertainment who will organise the concert said an event of this size usually takes months of planning but they managed to smash it out in just six weeks.
“When you think that Grinspoon are flying overnight from Perth to play is amazing,” Michael Chugg said. “Lime Cordiale are at Coffs Harbour the night before so it was quite easy to say you’re driving two hours to Lismore.
“Sheppard are playing in the Big Chill festival in Armidale the night before so that’s a four-hour drive up the road.
“To get Paul Kelly is incredible,” Mr Chugg said. “Paul has actually written a song called the Northern Rivers which I am sure will premiere in the next couple of weeks.”
Mr Chugg said the coverage of the floods on the news didn’t prepare him for what he saw when he arrived in Lismore.
“You don’t really realise from watching the news but when you arrive here and see what’s happened, it’s mind-blowing,” he said. “and we are very determined to do it [the concert].”
Mr Chugg said the federal resilience body has put money into the event and the NSW government has financially backed it to make the concert happen.
“To do a line-up like this at a normal concert would cost $600,000 – $700,000, and that’s just the bands,” Mr Chugg said.
“To get these bands all working for nothing basically, just the costs of getting here is really rewarding and it shows how generous the Australian music industry can be.
The concert is not a charity, it is about giving the people of Lismore something to do
“They still have to go through the rigmarole of applying for tickets,” Mr Chugg said.
Tickets are available now from Moshtix for residents living in postcodes 2471, 2472, and 2480.
Those outside these areas wanting to attend can get tickets from 8.00am Saturday 30 April.
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