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- April 30, 2023
Love Rising Raised More Than $500,000 In Tennessee To Support LGBTQ+ Community
Love Rising lived up to its name and raised more than $500,000 for various Tennessee LGBTQ+ causes.
The March 20 concert in Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena was proud to welcome big names like Hozier, Sheryl Crow, Hayley Williams, Yola, and many more. Drag queens and kings also took the stage in this iconic lineup. Produced by Live Nation, the benefit concert was “a celebration of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” with a goal to “let freedom sing (and dance),” according to the concert’s posters.
The Looking Out Foundation has paired music with empowerment since 2008, launching campaigns to support the community in social justice and humanitarian causes around the country and the world. The foundation collected donations and doubled contributions up to $100,000 for this event. The organization collects donations via Propeller, which pairs nonprofit organizations with artists and events. Merchandise is also available online.
The money will go toward four Tennessee organizations that support the local LGBTQ+ community. The Tennessee Equality Project is a legislative advocacy group lobbying the Tennessee government to support LGBTQ+ rights. Another benefiting organization, inclusion tennessee, focuses on equity and justice by cultivating connections with the community to programs, services, and resources. OUTMemphis is the largest, longest-running social services provider for the LGBTQ+ community in the region, and The Tennessee Pride Chamber represents hundreds of corporations, small businesses, and LGBTQ+ and allied professionals in Tennessee to promote advocacy, education, and connections.
The impressive lineup not only brought together an array of pop, indie-rock, Americana and country performers, some of whom move in overlapping orbits, but not all of whom would ordinarily share the same stage — it counted as the state’s largest gathering to date of LGBTQIA+ people and allies who oppose the legislation, reinforcing for the thousands that packed the arena that they, too, speak for The Volunteer State.
~ NPR
The beneficiary concert comes at a major time for the LGBTQ+ community in Tennessee — Tennessee has enacted more anti-LGBTQ+ laws than any other state since 2015. The Tennessee Equality Project distributed material to educate on current legislative proposals and campaigns and how to take action, available here.
If you missed the concert but want to support Love Rising, the foundation is still accepting donations and encourages Tennessee voters to register.
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