| Thursday, October 18, 2007 |
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Rock for the Cure for Breast Cancer
Posted @ 12:41 PM :: 157 Views ::
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by Andrew Baker
Melissa Etheridge, Sheryl Crow, Anastacia, Linda McCartney, Dusty Springfield, Garth Brooks.
What do these musicians have in common?
This is a short list of musicians who either have breast cancer, have died from breast cancer or who support breast cancer research with their music.
So why do musicians get behind causes like breast cancer? For some, they have no choice. Linda McCartney, wife of Beatle Paul McCartney and member of Wings, was diagnosed with breast cancer and died from the disease in 1998.
Dusty Springfield was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1994, went into remission, and the cancer returned in 1996. She died in 1999.
Melissa Etheridge was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004, and continues to fight the disease in the public eye. In 2005, she performed at the Grammy Awards with a bald head, a result of her chemotherapy treatments.
Etheridge is not only a survivor of breast cancer, but she also is an advocate. Her song I Run For Life is about her struggle with the disease and her willingness to fight it.
Sheryl Crow was diagnosed with the early stages of breast cancer in 2006, and was back on stage shortly after treatment. She is now a leader in the fight to find better screening since mammograms and self-examination that she believes doesn’t work well for young women. Singer Anastacia was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2003 when she was just 29 years old. She has set up the Anastacia Fund through the Breast Cancer Research Foundation to help women who were diagnosed with the disease at a young age who have no family history of the disease. Her cancer was also the inspiration behind her third album, “Anastacia,” released in 2005.
Country music superstar Garth Brooks has also joined the fight to end breast cancer. For every “Pink Edition” of his “Ultimate Hits” Album that is sold, $10 will go toward the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation. The Pink Edition of the album will be available on November 15th, 2007, and will include information about how to protect yourself and those you love from breast cancer.
There are certainly other musicians who have joined the fight against breast cancer. Many who are not as well known nationally have released CD projects where the proceeds go to fight this disease.
Arizona jazz musician Laura Fial has set up a project called "Breast Cancer CD 2000", when her doctor suggested it as a way to get her mind off of her cancer. Fial brought together other breast cancer survivors and recorded the CD. The proceeds were donated to the Arizona Institute for Breast Health.
Abrazos – Spanish for “hug” – is another project CD project that donates proceeds to the Komen foundation. Each year a new CD is released by the organization with the music of popular recording artists who support the cause by donating to the project.
There are musician organizations that also benefit people who are fighting cancer. The Musicians on Call Foundation will send musicians to the bedside of patients who are fighting cancer. Musicians like Chris Daughtry & Amos Lee have performed in health facilities for the organization. In June 2007, fans who attended the CMA Festival in Nashville helped raise $15,000 for the Musicians on Call Foundation.
Music is definitely something that people need when they face a disease like breast cancer, and it always helps when musicians join the cause by donating their time or their influence.
Please click the links below to find more information about the organizations listed in this article, and find out how you can get involved.
http://ww5.komen.org/home/
www.bcrfcure.org
http://www.sing4lifebreastcancer.org/music.htm
http://www.gustavolovato.com/CancerBenefitCD.htm
http://www.musiciansoncall.org/
Click HERE to see Joss Stone singing Dusty Springfield's "Son of a Preacher Man" at the 2006 UK Music Hall of Fame. |
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