Brian Eno has announced Together for Palestine, a benefit concert that will happen at London’s Wembley Arena on September 17. He’s one of the organizers and calls it “a night of music, reflection and hope.” The lineup hasn’t been announced yet but tickets go on presale Monday, August 4 at 10 AM UK time (4AM East Coast time). The benefit’s website says: “Together we can raise millions in urgently needed aid for families in Gaza. Every penny donated will go to Palestinian humanitarian organisations saving lives under fire. All funds will go through Choose Love, a UK-registered charity who support local partners in conflict zones.”
Here’s Eno’s statement from Instagram:
I’ve had the good fortune to work with some of the world’s most remarkable artists for over 50 years.
But one of my biggest regrets is that during that time so many of us have remained silent about Palestine.
Often that silence has come from fear—real fear—that speaking out could provoke a backlash, close doors or end a career.
But that’s now changing—partly because some artists and activists have lit the path, but mostly because the truth of what’s going on has become impossible to ignore.
What we are witnessing in Gaza isn’t a mystery, and neither is it a blur of competing narratives making it ‘hard to understand’.
When dozens of non-partisan organisations like Amnesty International and Doctors Without Borders describe it as genocide, the moral line is clear.
We can’t remain silent.
Which is why I’m helping to organise Together for Palestine—a night of music, reflection and hope at Wembley Arena on 17ᵗʰ September.
My sincere belief is that this evening can become a moment of courage where artists come together to speak the truth in their hearts—which is what we trust artists to do.
Whether on stage or by video from around the world, this is a chance for us to stand together and say: this can’t continue.
Will Brian Eno, who has only played a handful of shows his entire solo career, be one of the performers? Stay tuned.
Meanwhile, there’s a three-day benefit, Punks for Palestine, that happens at Washington, DC’s St Stephen’s Church on October 3-5. So far the lineup includes pageninetynine, Majority Rule, and Uniform, with more to be announced. Tickets go on sale Friday, August 1 via Bandcamp.