Music for Relief launched multiple fundraising programs to support the people of Japan following the earthquake and tsunami which devastated coastal areas of the island nation in March of 2011.
Download to Donate: Tsunami Relief
A massive 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck off the east coast of Japan on March 11, 2011, triggering a tsunami and causing unimaginable destruction. To help those affected by the disaster, Music for Relief launched a Download to Donate playlist featuring 26 unreleased songs by leading artists. The exclusive catalog was available at downloadtodonate.org for a donation of $10 or more, raising $130,000 for emergency response efforts.
Japan Relief T-Shirts
Mike Shinoda donated two original designs. The t-shirts were available at musicforrelief.org and linkinpark.com and at Linkin Park concerts in Asia. Raised: $73,000.
Secret Show for Japan
Music for Relief challenged supporters to raise $500 each for ongoing recovery in Japan and as a thank you, provided two tickets to a private Linkin Park concert with special guest, B’z, Japan’s biggest band of all time. An additional ticket was awarded for each additional $250 raised and other incentives such as meet & greet passes, signed instruments and the chance to watch the show by the side of the stage were some of the prizes earned by the top fundraisers. Raised over $350,000.
Save the Children
In Japan, Music for Relief partnered with Save the Children to address immediate and long-term needs of children and families. Funds supported 19 child-friendly spaces in shelters in the hard-hit Myagi and Iwate prefectures. These provided children with an opportunity to play safely while freeing up parents to attend to recovery for the whole family. Funds raised also helped children return to school by providing school supplies, psychosocial support, preparedness materials and disaster drills, school lunches and financial support for children whose parents lost their livelihood in the disaster.
Linkin Park site visit to Ishinomaki with Music for Relief and Save the Children
In September, six months after the disaster, Linkin Park visited Ishinomaki, Japan with Music for Relief to assess how recovery efforts with Save the Children were helping. Band members met children and school administrators who lived through the earthquake and tsunami and who have now implemented new disaster-preparedness programs to help save lives in the future. The band members and MFR also saw how music programs led by Save the Children are bringing joy to affected children despite the hardships they have faced in the aftermath.
