Lady Gaga Performs Touching Tribute, Nirvana Reunites and Music’s Biggest Stars Catch Up Backstage at L.A. FireAid Benefit Concert
“California, Los Angeles, Altadena, the Palisades — we are in this together,” Green Day’s frontman Billie Joe Armstrong screamed to a sold-out crowd at L.A.’s Kia Forum on Thursday for the FireAid wildfire benefit concert.
As the first act of the star-studded evening, the iconic rock band kicked off the show with their 2009 track “Last Night on Earth,” bringing out fellow artist Billie Eilish to perform. The group reiterated that everyone was “in this together.”
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Actor and comedian Billy Crystal, who lost his home in the Palisades Fire, took the stage after Green Day to officially welcome the crowd. He spoke about his own experience, telling concertgoers that he was wearing the clothes when he evacuated from his home and which he wore for a week. He announced that all donations of the night would be matched by Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and his wife, Connie Snyder, the first of which came from U2, according to Crystal, who donated $1 million.
Alanis Morissette and Anderson .Paak kept the evening going. Morissette performed her 1998 song “Thank U” with messages of gratitude. “As far as I’m concerned, this is one of the greatest nights in Los Angeles city tonight,” Paak told the crowd. The artist also gave the crowd a big surprise in the form of a special appearance of legendary rapper Dr. Dre.
“This is a magical moment for me. I’ve got so much love, you guys. This summer will be the mark of 40 years that I’ve been in this business. I appreciate all the love you’ve been giving me. I appreciate all the first responders and all the firemen who put their lives on the line. It’s all about love for me today,” the rapper said before jumping into his and Tupac’s 1995 hit “California Love.” The crowd went wild as he performed with .Paak and singer and drummer Sheila E.
Legendary singer Joni Mitchell serenaded the crowd, a rare live appearance for the 81-year-old artist. The benefit also included words from those directly impacted by the fires, including Eshele Williams, her sisters and mother from Altadena, with ties to the community dating back to 1948 when their grandmother bought a home in the area. Williams explained that of the five of them onstage, four lost homes in the fire.
“We grabbed what we could, pictures, our grandmother’s special clock. We collected our father’s ashes and his flag from serving in the military,” she told the crowd. “We love our community and right now we are all grieving [an] immense loss.”
Folk rock band Dawes performed a rendition of their 2011 song “Time Spent in Los Angeles.” The group’s frontman Taylor Goldsmith, married to actress Mandy Moore, and its drummer Griffin Goldsmith, his brother, were both directly impacted by the fire. Griffin lost his home in the fire, while Taylor lost his studio, including almost all of their instruments.
Dawes also brought out Stephen Stills to perform together before facilitating one of the several surprises of the night — a reunion between Stills and Graham Nash. The iconic members of Crosby, Stills and Nash performed their 1970 song, “Teach Your Children Well.”
“Take care of yourself, take care of one another,” Nash said from the stage.
Samuel L. Jackson kicked off the Intuit Dome portion of the night. The actor told the crowd the show was so big two arenas were needed. “We’ve got hundreds of first responders here in the house. Let’s give them a huge round of applause,” he shouted as the crowd erupted for those in the house.
Jackson introduced a Pasadena firefighter, Chien Yu, who tragically lost his Altadena home in the Eaton Fire. Yu described evacuating his family and then immediately getting to work. The actor then brought out legendary singer, and his former neighbor, Rod Stewart.
The Brit kicked off the Intuit show with a rendition of the hit song “Forever Young,” telling the crowd L.A. is in his heart and soul after living in the city for 50 years. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer also performed his cover of Curtis Mayfield’s “People Get Ready” — which he noted was apropos of the current time.
John Mayer performed for the crowd at the Forum, including his cover of Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin’” before legendary group Earth, Wind & Fire took the stage at the Intuit Dome, introduced by Abbott Elementary creator and star Quinta Brunson. The crowd came alive to the group’s long-lasting hit “September.” John Fogerty joined The Black Crowes for a rendition of his 1971 Creedence Clearwater Revival song, “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?” The group also brought out Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash for a cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Going to California.”
Rising star Gracie Abrams, who grew up in the Palisades, was joined by The National’s Aaron Dessner for a performance of her recent hit “I Love You, I’m Sorry” and a cover of “A Long December” by Counting Crows. No Doubt had The Forum up and dancing with their finale song “Just a Girl.” Tate McRae and Jelly Roll performed at the Intuit Dome, the latter bringing out Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker for a standout cover of Bob Seger’s “Hollywood Nights.”
Stevie Nicks emotionally recounted that, as she was evacuated, she expected to see her home on fire, fearing it would spread to the entire street. “She stands strong just like her mom,” the singer said. She dedicated her iconic track “Landslide” to the Santa Rosa firefighters who saved her home. The legendary singer followed it up with “Edge of Seventeen.”
Katy Perry, backed by the Pasadena Chorale, kicked things off her set with a performance of “Rise” before transitioning into hits “Roar” and “California Girls,” as she waved a California flag during the latter. “Can we keep this energy going forever?” the star asked the crowd. “This is humanity, this is love, this is kindness; I’ve been so inspired by how quickly our community organized to help all of our neighbors in need. It really reminds me that the people have the power.”
Back at the Forum, there was a surprise Nirvana reunion with surviving members Dave Grohl (on drums), Krist Novoselic and Pat Smear, along with help from St. Vincent (“Breed”), Kim Gordon (“School”) and Joan Jett (“Territorial Pissings”), as well as Dave’s daughter Violet Grohl (“All Apologies”). The group, who united for a similar female-fronted performance at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014, kicked up the volume in what was also Grohl’s first onstage appearance since he revealed in the fall that he had welcomed a daughter born outside of his marriage. The onslaught of guitars reverberated throughout the Forum, a fitting space for two-sixths of the Foo Fighters’ original lineup, who had played the venue multiple times and hosted a tribute there for late drummer Taylor Hawkins in September 2022.
Lil Baby followed up at the Intuit with a pair of songs at Intuit before Red Hot Chili Peppers rocked the Forum, kicking off with home-state favorites “Dani California” and “Californication” and closing out the night with the pensive “Under the Bridge.”
At the Intuit, Miles Teller shared how he and his wife lost their Palisades home, then brought out Green Day drummer Tré Cool for a special moment.
Olivia Rodrigo was the buzz of backstage, where she was spotted with boyfriend Louis Partridge before and after her two-song set. Following a commanding performance of her debut hit “Drivers License,” the 21-year-old declared her love for L.A., noting that she’s lived in the city her whole life and written many songs about living there. Among them: “Deja Vu.” Clearly a favorite of the kids in attendance, who clamored for photos, she also obliged Sting’s grandchildren in a one-on-one moment.
The Police frontman kept the crowd moving, performing two of the band’s classics, “Message in a Bottle” and “Driven to Tears,” before delivering a solo favorite aligned with the night’s greater purpose, “Fragile.”
Mexican singer and rapper Peso Pluma was spotted backstage giving Eilish a hug after performing his remix of La Bebe. Eilish was introduced as “L.A.’s very own,” taking the stage at nearly midnight with her brother Finneas. The 23-year-old opted for an acoustic set including “Wildflower,” “The Greatest” and “Birds of a Feather.”
As was customary throughout the evening, Eilish and Finneas introduced the next performer, Stevie Wonder, to the delight of the crowd. The artist chose his 1976 song “Love’s in Need of Love Today,” followed by “Superstition” and “Higher Ground,” for which he brought out Sting and Flea and had the audience on its feet.
The final act kicked off with Jimmy Kimmel, who took the stage declaring, “Hi, I’m Olivia Rodrigo,” before thanking the benefits organizers. The comedian then introduced the night’s final performer, Lady Gaga, “to heal us with her spirit and talent.” Gaga closed the show with two songs from A Star Is Born — “Shallow” and “Always Remember Us This Way.” The singer finished the show with a song she co-wrote with her fiancé, Michael Polansky, to provide some hope.
“When I was thinking about what to sing tonight, I thought I wanted to do something hopeful,” the Grammy-winning singer told the crowd, explaining she thought about her songs but couldn’t find something that was just right. “Me and my friend Michael, my fiancé, my love, we wrote this song for you. It’s just for tonight. It’s just for you.”
The crowd also proved to be star-studded, as former Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff were spotted in a suite at the Intuit Dome. Social media video videos captured the couple waving to a cheering crowd, and Emhoff posted to X (formerly Twitter) saying how grateful they were to be at the concert in “our hometown of Los Angeles.”
“It is a wonderful night that shows the strength and resilience of our city as we begin to recover and rebuild from the devastating wildfires,” he said in the post.
A slew of industry figures were spotted at the show as well. The man of the evening was undoubtedly Irving Azoff, who spearheaded the event along with his family foundation, wife Shelli, son Jeffrey and daughter Allison Statter. He was seated alongside Apple’s Eddy Cue and Warner Bros. Discovery’s David Zaslav at the Forum and Steve Ballmer with wife Connie. Almost Famous filmmaker Cameron Crowe was seen in the same viewing area. Elsewhere at the Forum, manager Roger Davies was spotted in the elevator escorting his client Pink to her performance slot; Howard Stern Show executive producer Gary Dell’Abate and Sirius XM executive Ross Zapin were seen at the Forum Club, where AEG’s Jay Marciano, Green Day agent Jenna Adler (CAA) and Crush Music’s Scott Nagelberg were holding court. At Intuit, WME’s Lucy Dickins, CAA’s Allison McGregor-Locker, ABC’s Scott Igoe and FireAid talent director Rick Krim lined the side of the stage to watch Eilish.
Live Nation, AEG and the Azoff Company partnered with the Intuit Dome and Kia Forum in Inglewood to host the benefit show, described as an evening of music and solidarity. The concerts are being broadcast by select AMC Theatres, Apple Music and the Apple TV App, Max, iHeartRadio, KTLA+, Netflix/Tudom, Paramount+, Prime Video and the Amazon Music Channel on Twitch, SiriusXM, SoundCloud, Veeps and YouTube, demonstrating how the music business is unifying around the local disaster.
Proceeds from the concert will go toward a 501(c)(3) created for the event that will focus on rebuilding infrastructure, supporting displaced families, and advancing fire prevention technologies and strategies to ensure L.A. is better prepared for fire emergencies.
FireAid is being produced by Shelli and Irving Azoff and the Azoff family, in conjunction with Live Nation and AEG Presents.
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