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As devastating wildfires continue to ravage Los Angeles County, a number of music businesses have stepped up to support relief efforts. Whether it’s multi-million dollar donations, offers to replace destroyed musical instruments and gear, or providing free studio time to affected musicians, it’s clear the industry is coming together to support both music professionals and the greater public who have suffered devastating losses.
Billboard has compiled a list of some of the music companies taking part in relief efforts around L.A. We will continue to update this list as more announcements are made.
If you’re a musician or music industry worker impacted by the fires, please see Billboard’s list of entertainment non-profits offering financial and other assistance. You can also check out a list of ways to help here.
Amazon Music
Amazon’s entertainment division, which includes Amazon Music, Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, along with Ring and Whole Foods, has committed $10 million to L.A. wildfire relief efforts. According to a company blog post, the money “will go directly to national and local disaster and response organizations.” This includes the American Red Cross of Southern California, FireAid, MusiCares, World Central Kitchen, the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation and more.
Sony Group Corporation
Sony has pledged $5 million toward supporting relief efforts related to the Los Angeles-area fires. The sum will be allocated to organizations supporting first responders, community relief and rebuilding efforts, as well as employee assistance programs.
Sony Music Group also said on Tuesday (Jan. 14) tht it would redirect funds allocated to its now-canceled Grammy Week party to local relief efforts.
Warner Music Group/Blavatnik Family Foundation Social Justice Fund
On Sunday (Jan. 12), the Warner Music Group’s social justice fund announced a pledge of $1 million to support fire relief and rebuilding efforts in Los Angeles. The funds will be directed to organizations assisting the Los Angeles community, local first responders and individuals in the music industry affected by the disaster. Recipients of the pledge include the California Community Foundation, the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation, Project HOPE and MusiCares, among others, according to a press release.
WMG added on Monday (Jan. 13) that it would not be holding its annual Grammy party and will instead redirect funds to efforts to combat the wildfires and help those affected.
Universal Music Group
The label giant announced that it would cancel all of the company’s Grammy-related events, including its artist showcase and after-Grammy party, and instead “redirect the resources that would have been used for those events to assist those affected by the wildfires.”
Good Boy Records
Good Boy Records, a label founded by producer Elie Rizk, is opening its doors for free to any musician who has lost their recording space in the L.A. fires. Click here for a public calendar and to book time at the company’s studio in Studio City.
Homemade Projects
Homemade Projects, a record label, influencer management firm, merchandiser and digital marketing agency, announced via Instagram after the fires took hold that anyone in the L.A. area in need of clothing could contact the company and be provided with new tees, hoodies, sweats and hats from its warehouse.
Guitar Center
The Guitar Center Music Foundation is offering support to L.A.-area musicians and music programs affected by the devastating fires, as announced on its website. Eligible individuals can apply for a one-time grant to help replace instruments lost or damaged in the fires. Applications are open through Feb. 28. To apply, visit the link here.
Discogs
The record-collecting marketplace announced it will donate its sales revenue on Friday (Jan. 17) directly to MusiCares, The Recording Academy’s non-profit arm, which is offering financial assistance to affected music industry workers.
Whoopi Goldberg is sticking up for Carrie Underwood after the singer came under fire for accepting the invitation to perform at Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration. While speaking to her The View cohosts Tuesday (Jan. 14), the Sister Act star acknowledged that though she personally doesn’t align with the president-elect’s policies, the American Idol alum has […]
After fleeing the raging wildfire that has decimated their Altadena neighborhood in Los Angeles, Mandy Moore and her family are sheltering with the singer/actress’ friend Hilary Duff. Moore’s brother-in-law, Dawes drummer Griffin Goldsmith — brother of her husband, Dawes singer Taylor Goldsmith — revealed the kind gesture in an emotional Instagram post detailing the toll the deadly fires have had on his family.
“All of this so overwhelming. But what is as equally overwhelming is the amount of love and generosity we are on the receiving end of. Our dear friends @matthewkoma and @hilaryduff thought it wise to set up a gofundme for us to help with everything moving forward. Not to mention they are currently housing my brother’s family,” Goldsmith wrote of the How I Met Your Father star and her musician husband, Matthew Koma.
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“They’ve taken care of my entire family from the moment this began,” he added. “I will never be able to thank them adequately. This is the kindest act any human could do for another. They are the most beautiful, selfless people we’ve ever known.”
Griffin Goldsmith’s post also noted that he convinced his whole family and closest friends to move to the Altadena neighborhood years ago — including the siblings’ parents, who lived around the corner from him — only to have their homes leveled in the conflagrations that have taken 16 lives in that area as the massive Eaton Fire continues to burn after scorching more than 14,000 acres so far.
“It’s Impossible to express how much we’re feeling right now. We’ve lost everything. 8 years of memories made in our house. 20 years of gear. My wife @quintessentiallykit was applying the finishing touches to the nursery for our baby boy who’s due in a few weeks,” Griffin wrote. “She had, throughout the years, poured her heart and soul into making the property a literal piece of paradise. Anyone who had the chance the visit can attest. We often would say to each other ‘I want to live together in this house for the rest of our lives.’”
He said the brothers’ parents lost their home, while Taylor and Mandy were forced to flee from their house just down the street. In addition, he said his wife’s childhood best friend, Chelsey, and her family, former Dawes bassist Wylie Gelber and his wife and their first crew member and old friend, Jake, all lost their homes as well. “The thing we mourn the most is the loss of the community,” he said.
See Goldsmith’s post here.
Goldsmith noted that they are, of course, not the only people who are dealing with these kinds of unimaginable losses. In addition to at least two dozen deaths reported so far, more than 12,000 homes and structures destroyed or damaged and nearly 100,000 Angelenos under evacuation orders, officials warned on Tuesday (Jan. 14) that the powerful Santa Ana winds that are driving the spread of the fires are expected to pick up again, with critical red flag warnings in place across much of southwestern California.
Dawes played an emotional version of their 2011 tribute to their city, “Time Spent in Los Angeles,” on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Monday night (Jan. 13), with images of the devastation playing on screens behind them.
Luckily for Moore and Goldsmith, their home was not a complete loss, but the This Is Us star hit back at haters who tried to shame her last week for posting a GoFundMe for her in-laws, who, as Griffin mentioned, are expecting their first child in a few weeks.
“People questioning whether we’re helping out our own family or attributing some arbitrary amount of money Google says someone has is NOT helpful or empathetic,” Moore wrote. “Of course we are. Our buddy Matt started this GoFundMe and I’m sharing because people have asked how they can help them. We just lost most of our life in a fire too. Kindly F OFF. No one is forcing you to do anything.”
The fires, which are the most destructive blazes in the city’s history, continue to burn, with the Palisades Fires just 17% contained to date, while the Eaton Fire is 35% contained and the Hurst Fire is 97% contained; three other smaller fires are reportedly now 100% contained. Click here for resources from organizations providing assistance to music industry workers.
After Carrie Underwood made headlines Monday (Jan. 13) for announcing she would play at Donald Trump’s inauguration, a former RuPaul’s Drag Race star decided to mock the country star online. In a post to her Instagram Stories on Monday evening, Drag Race season 14 contestant Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté shared a recent post from the […]
Ringo Starr is heading down South while simultaneously giving a little help to his friends in the West. As announced Tuesday (Jan. 14), the former Beatle’s upcoming concert special at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium will air this spring on CBS and Paramount+, with some of the proceeds benefiting wildfire relief amid the ongoing crisis in the Los Angeles area.
Titled Ringo & Friends at the Ryman, the two-hour special will find Starr performing songs from his new country album, Look Up, which arrived Jan. 10. He’ll be joined by a star-studded list of friends on stage, including Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle — both of whom collaborated on the drummer’s new LP — as well as Sheryl Crow, Rodney Crowell, Mickey Guyton, Emmylou Harris, Sarah Jarosz, Jamey Johnson, Brenda Lee, Larkin Poe, The War and Treaty, and Jack White.
Beyond the selections from Look Up, Starr and his cohorts will also reimagine tracks such as “Boys,” “Act Naturally,” “With a Little Help From My Friends,” “Yellow Submarine,” “Don’t Pass Me By” and “It Don’t Come Easy” with a country twist. Plus, the rock icon will delve into his life and career as his guest stars reflect on their own personal memories of his influence in the special.
Proceeds from the show will go toward the American Red Cross supporting people affected by the fires devastating L.A. County. In the past week, numerous blazes have broken out in the area — starting in Pacific Palisades followed by Eaton and Hurst — displacing tens of thousands of residents from their homes and burning countless structures. At least 24 people have been reported dead, according to CNN.
Starr’s taping is set for Tuesday and Wednesday (Jan. 15), marking just the latest of six total times the musician has performed at the famed Nashville venue. While speaking to Billboard about his new album and the special earlier this month, he said, “The Ryman means a lot to my soul, because most of the acts that I was following [growing up] were at the Ryman.”
“It is always a thrill to play the Ryman and this time we are going country!” Starr added in a release. “I’m excited to hear my songs done in a country vein and to play with this incredible group of musicians. It will be two nights of peace, love and country music.”
Amazon is committing $10 million to L.A. wildlife relief efforts, the company announced on Monday (Jan. 13). The donation comes from Amazon’s entertainment division (Amazon Music, Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios), along with Ring and Whole Foods Market.
According to a blog post on the Amazon website, the money “will go directly to national and local disaster and response organizations including the American Red Cross of Southern California, FireAid, MusiCares Fire Relief Effort, World Central Kitchen, Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation, Habitat for Los Angeles Wildfire Fund, and Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce Small Business Relief/Recovery Fund, among others, as well as in-kind advertising opportunities on Prime Video for nonprofits supporting LA fire relief efforts.”
Amazon has already donated more than 145,000 essential items to 17 local organizations working on the wildfire response, including fire stations, community fire brigades, the American Red Cross, Salvation Army, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), Dream Center and multiple YMCA chapters. This includes 30,000 items to the Los Angeles County Salvation Army, 5,000 shelter items, more than 300 wildfire response items, gift cards to LAUSD to support teachers who lost their classrooms in the fires and 1,000 items to support fire stations, among many others.
The company says it’s also “deploying” its AWS cloud technology, including drone support, “to help emergency responders better understand and react to the evolving wildfire situation.” Additionally, it says it’s “curating opportunities” for its Southern California employees to volunteer with organizations including the LA Regional Food Bank and LAUSD.
Amazon’s announcement follows similar commitments made by companies including Sony Group Corporation, which on Monday said it would donate $5 million to wildfire relief efforts, as well as the Warner Music Group/Blavatnik Family Foundation Social Justice Fund, which pledged $1 million.
Sony Group Corporation has pledged $5 million to support relief efforts related to the Los Angeles-area wildfires. The sum will be allocated to organizations supporting first responders, community relief and rebuilding efforts, as well as employee assistance programs. “Los Angeles has been the home of our entertainment business for more than 35 years. Through our […]
Metallica is using their platform to give back to communities within Los Angeles that have been affected by the catastrophic fires across the city. The band’s philanthropic foundation, All Within My Hands, is granting $500,000 to relief efforts carried out by the California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Recovery Fund and the Pasadena Community Foundation’s Eaton Canyon […]
Doja Cat is doing her part to give back to her home city as wildfires continue to devastate Los Angeles.
On Monday (Jan. 13), the rapper — who was born and raised in the L.A. area — shared on Instagram that she has partnered with the American Red Cross to specially design a line of merchandise benefitting the charity organization’s relief efforts in California, where tens of thousands of people have had to evacuate since the outbreak of unrelenting wind-fueled fires last week. At least 24 people have been reported dead so far, according to CNN, while countless structures have fallen as the blazes have torn through a collective 38,549 combined acres.
“Please help me and @americanredcross support my beautiful state of California,” Doja wrote, captioning photos of some of the pieces. “100% of proceeds go to American Red Cross to support the people of California affected by the wildfires.”
Designed in partnership with artist Pini, the merch line features T-shirts and hoodies in different shades of blue and gray. One graphic features a sketch of Doja hugging the outline of California while modeling a dress made out of ocean waves; another shows a similar sketch riding the Golden State like a surfboard.
The “Paint the Town Red” musician first shared one of the designs two days prior, writing, “Holding my state with love.” Pini also posted about the collaboration on Instagram Saturday (Jan. 11) and wrote, “LA has been my home for the last ten years, to see the destruction of these fires over the last couple of days has been devastating.”
The clothing pieces are available for purchase now online. Billboard is also collecting resources and ways to support L.A. residents in crisis.
Doja is just one of many Californians left reeling amid the wildfire crisis, which began Jan. 7 when a rapidly spreading fire first broke out in Pacific Palisades. More blazes soon emerged in areas affecting the Hollywood Hills, Pasadena, Altadena, Sylmar and Calabasas, with numerous residents — including stars such as Mandy Moore, Jhené Aiko and Tina Knowles — reporting losing their homes in the destruction.
One loss that may hit close to home for the “Woman” artist is the burning of Malibu’s Harbor Studios, where Doja worked on her 2023 album Scarlet. Owner Zach Brandon announced on Instagram that the legendary recording space had been lost to the fires Jan. 8, writing, “Harbor was taken from so many artists who cared so deeply about Harbor. It was a place of musical freedom… a sanctuary in the most literal sense of the word.”
See Doja’s post and designs below.
A woman accusing Diplo of sharing “revenge porn” has dropped her lawsuit against the DJ, just weeks after a federal judge ruled she would need to reveal her identity if she wanted to proceed with the case.
In a court filing on Monday (Jan. 13), attorneys for the unnamed “Jane Doe” asked the judge to dismiss the lawsuit — a case that claims the DJ (Thomas Wesley Pentz) filmed sexual encounters without the woman’s knowledge and shared them on Snapchat.
The motion asked the judge to dismiss the case “without prejudice” — meaning the woman could still refile it at some point in the future. Her attorneys did not immediately return a request for comment on the decision to drop their case or whether they plan to refile it.
The move came two weeks after Judge Mónica Ramírez Almadani ruled that the Doe must use her real name to keep pursuing her accusations against Diplo. The judge acknowleged that the allegations were “sensitive and of a highly personal nature,” but said the accuser had failed to legally show that she needs to remain anonymous.
“Those using the courts must be prepared to accept the public scrutiny that is an inherent part of public trials,” the judge wrote, quoting from another old ruling. “Plaintiff has not sufficiently demonstrated that this case warrants an exception.”
At the time, Doe’s attorneys vowed to appeal that ruling, saying revealing her name “risks permanently linking a survivor to their trauma.” The status of any such appellate effort is unclear after Monday’s voluntary dismissal.
Diplo’s attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the voluntary dismissal of the case against their client. In previous statements, they have strongly denied the lawsuit’s allegations, calling it an “obvious shakedown attempt.”
In a complaint filed in June, Diplo’s accuser alleged she’d had a consensual sexual relationship with the DJ from 2016 to 2023, and that she occasionally “gave defendant Diplo permission to record them having sex.” But she said she later learned that he had sometimes secretly recorded them and then shared footage on the internet “without plaintiff’s knowledge or consent.”
“Plaintiff brings this action to recover for the emotional and physical injuries she endured because of Diplo’s actions and to make sure no one else is forced to suffer the privacy invasions and physical and mental trauma she felt and continues to feel to this day,” Doe’s attorneys wrote.
The lawsuit accused Diplo of violating the federal Violence Against Women Act, which was amended in 2022 to ban the sharing of “intimate” images without the consent of those depicted in them. The case also cited an earlier revenge porn law enacted by the state of California.
The abrupt dismissal of the Jane Doe case came a week after lawyers for Diplo announced a deal to resolve a messy legal dispute with Shelly Auguste, another former romantic partner of the DJ/producer, as reported by Rolling Stone.
In that case, which had been set to go to trial this month, Diplo accused the woman of stalking, trespassing and releasing revenge porn of him. She had also leveled her own set of legal claims against him, including sexual battery and assault.