San Francisco Hearts Haiti January 27, 2010

One week after the devastating 7.0 earthquake which crippled Port-au-Prince and destroyed much of Haiti’s infrastructure, leaving hundreds of thousands dead or injured, residents are still suffering aftershocks and in desperate need of medical attention, emergency services, and basic necessities such as food, clothing, and shelter.

The Bay Area’s music community has a longstanding tradition of coming together for benefit shows in times of crisis, and the Haiti quake certainly qualifies as a crisis. In its aftermath, world beat maestros (and frequent supporters of humanitarian causes) Sila and Maisha Productions have organized a benefit concert for earthquake relief boasting some of the Bay Area’s best bands and solo artists.

The show, called “San Francisco Hearts Haiti,” takes place at the Independent January 27, and features SILA, Kalbass Kreyol (from Haiti), Bayonics, Native Elements, Joe Bagala, Meklit Hadero, Thank You Julius, and DJ sets by Jeremiah (with Afrobeat Nation), Non-Stop Bhangra Djs, Felina, DJ Amar & Electric Vardo Live and J-Boogie. This stellar lineup incorporates a diverse mix of genres and musical styles: Afrobeat, Latin, reggae, bhangra, soul, R&B, jazz, hip-hop, dub/downtempo, and more.

“We put this benefit together because Haiti is in our hearts and minds right now, and we wanted to do what we could, as soon as we could,” said Sila. “While it’s important to donate money for disaster relief, it’s equally important to send positive vibes out to the Haitian people, to let them know that the Bay Area supports them in their time of need. There’s no better way to do that than to have a show like this, with an amazing lineup.” Additionally, Sila notes, for people who can’t make the Independent show, door proceeds from “Sahara,” his Thursday night residency at jazz supper club Coda, will also go toward Haitian disaster relief.

Added DJ Jeremiah, “When I heard about the earthquake, I immediately wanted to go to Haiti to help out. But I realized that I can do more from here. We are so fortunate to live in the United States, it’s easy to take that for granted. Something like this really puts things into perspective and makes it clear that we have to give back.”

Tickets for this special benefit are priced at $10 (though people are certainly encourage to donate more if they can). 100% of all proceeds from the door will be donated to Doctors Without Borders (http://doctorswithoutborders.org/news/article.cfm?id=4175&cat=video)

100% OF PROCEEDS BENEFIT HAITI RELIEF FUND. TICKETS ARE ONLY $10 FOR THIS INCREDIBLE ONCE IN A LIFETIME LINEUP!

LINEUP:
SILA (http://www.myspace.com/afrofunk)
Kalbass Kreyol - FROM HAITI
(http://myspace.com/kalbasskreyol
Bayonics (http://www.myspace.com/bayonics)
Native Elements (http://www.myspace.com/nativeelements )
DJ J-Boogie (http://www.myspace.com/dubtronicscience)
Joe Bagala: (http://www.myspace.com/joebagale)
Meklit Hadero (http://www.meklithadero.com/ )
Aima The Dreamer (http://www.myspace.com/aimathedreamer)
Thank you Julius (http://www.myspace.com/thankyoujulius)
Dj Jeremiah & the Afrobeat Nation
Non Stop Bhangra Dj Set (http://nonstopbhangra.blogspot.com/)
Dj Felina (http://djfelina.com)
DJ Amar & Electric Vardo Live with Special Guest Belly Dancers
(http://www.electricvardo.com)

$10 tickets available at: http://www.ticketweb.com/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&eventId=1141325

Official Website: http://silaband.com