Buskers unite to aid L.A. wildfire victims in Busk-Aid, L.A., March 30, 2025

 

BUSK-AID-L.A.: BUSKERS HIT THE STREETS TO BENEFIT L.A. WILDFIRE VICTIMS, SUNDAY, MARCH 30 IN CITY’S ECHO PARK DISTRICT; PROCEEDS TO SWEET RELIEF MUSICIANS' FUND Performing at various “perches” on Sunset Blvd., artists will include Dustbowl Revival, Ronee Blakely, Ruby Friedman Orchestra, The Living Sisters, Tony Gilkyson, Rick Shea, Craig Elkins, Hollywood Highsteppers, Water Tower Band, Fernando Perdomo, Ilana Katz Katz, Jon Wahl, Magickly Delishous, Enrich'd White, Dallas Don,  Arielle Silver, Water Band, and Fat, Evil Children LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The music community wasted no time in coming to the aid of those rendered homeless following the January wildfires in and around Los Angeles, with benefit concerts popping up in arenas, theaters, nightclubs and roadhouses. Now a fleet of buskers will take to the streets for Busk-Aid-L.A., a benefit featuring both local and out-of-town performers gathering in the 1800 block of the city’s Sunset Blvd., in Echo Park, on Sunday, March 30, from 2:30 - 8 p.m. Busk-Aid-L.A. is presented in association with the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, who will donate proceeds where most needed among musicians displaced in the fires. The Wild Honey Foundation, an organization devoted to passing on the passion, creativity, and idealism found in rock, R&B, folk, and pop music to future generations, is helping with logistics for the festival. The event is free, with performers stationed at The Echo, Stories BooksCafe, Masa and Señor Fish, all located at or around the intersection of Sunset Blvd. and LeMoyne St. in the heart of L.A.’s Echo Park. Although the music will be free, Busk-Aid will post a QR code (see below) which will link to the contribution page. Among the artists performing at Busk-Aid-L.A.: Dustbowl Revival, the Living Sisters (Eleni Mandell and Becky Stark), Rick Shea, Tony Gilkyson, Carla Olson & Todd Wolfe, Ilana Katz Katz, Ruby Friedman Orchestra, Fernando Perdomo, Magickly Delicious, E'nRICHED WHITE, Dallas Don, Hollywood Highsteppers, Water Band and Fat, Evil Children. There will be last-minute additions and surprises, including a few artists diverting from tour routing to join in. The benefit is being organized by music industry veterans Cary Baker and Liz Garo. Baker was a 40-year music publicity executive at Capitol Records, I.R.S. Records and four other labels prior to writing a book about busking, Down on the Corner: Adventures in Busking & Street Music (Jawbone Press). Garo, who heads Stepping Stone presents, is a longtime Los Angeles concert promoter, organizing shows at such venues as the Regent Theater, Echo and Echoplex, Spaceland, Love Song Bar, among others.  Co-organizer Baker says of the event: “Chicago may be my hometown – and where I saw my first buskers … street blues musicians on Maxwell Street. But L.A., my home of 40 years, is where my soul will forever live. The wildfires were an unspeakable tragedy that affected many friends and acquaintances in the L.A. music scene. I felt the best way I could give back to the community – with busking on my mind following months of book promotion – was a busking event. Not all the participating artists have busking in their past, but all are looking forward to performing on the streets for the worthiest of causes. I was fortunate to partner with Liz Garo, one of L.A.’s most respected concert promoters, and the Sweet Relief Foundation, which will put the proceeds where most needed. Thanks also to a few musicians — Ruby Friedman from Portland, Ilana Katz Katz, a well-known and very passionate subway musician from Boston — who are making long trips to join us down on the corner.” Aric Steinberg, executive director of the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, says: “We absolutely love the idea of musicians helping musicians, and Busk-Aid-L.A. is a perfect example.  So many notable artists started out as street performers, and it’s so cool to see Cary, Liz and their team harnessing the power of busking to help Los Angeles musicians who have been displaced by the fires.  We’re here to help disburse the funds and look forward to jamming in the streets with our supporters.” Schedule  (subject to change) Echo            1822 Sunset Blvd.             2:30pm- 2:50pmFat, Evil Children 2:50pm - 3:20pm  Watertower Band            Sage Restaurant 1700 Sunset Blvd. 3:30pm - 3:50pm Enrich'd White             4pm - 4:20pm Dallas Don          4:30pm - 4:50pm  Magickly Delishous         4:50pm - 5:20pm Jon Wahl Masa 1800 W Sunset Blvd. 3:20pm - 3:40pm  Ilana Katz Katz   3:50pm - 4:10pm  Ronee Blakely    Sticky Rice                     1801 W Sunset Blvd.                       4pm - 4:20pm   Fernando Perdomo         4:30pm - 4:50pm Craig Elkins         5:20pm - 5:30pm Hollywood Highsteppers      Shoe Palace 1700 Sunset Blvd. 4:50 - 5:20 Carla Olson + Todd Wolfe 5:30pm- 5:50pm  Hollywood Highsteppers      6pm - 6:20pm   Ruby Friedman Orchestra             Stories (front) 1716 Sunset Blvd. 6:20pm - 6:45pm The Living Sisters           6:55pm - 7:30pm Arielle Silver         Stories (patio) 1716 Sunset Blvd. 7:10pm - 7:40pm  Tony Gilkyson + Rick Shea             7:50pm - 8:20pm Dustbowl Revival                   Artist bios: Dustbowl Revival Going strong into their second decade after starting from a humble Craigslist ad founder and lead songwriter Z. Lupetin posted in bohemian Venice Beach (where they started busking), some would say Dustbowl Revival’s ever-evolving collective plays a spicy cocktail of folky-funk or booty-shaking jangly rock ’n’ soul: expertly mixing their New Orleans-tinted brass section with their signature Laurel Canyon harmonies and fearless lyrics. Their albums have been streamed over 20 million times and counting with a new one on the way in 2025.   Ruby Friedman Orchestra Fronted by the Portland-based/Los Angeles-bred singer-songwriter Ruby Friedman, the Ruby Friedman Orchestra has a new album, Chimes After Midnight , coming from Label 51 Recordings in June,  The record, described as “Every song, a knockout” by Willamette Week, is the successor to RFO’s highly regarded 2016 release Gem. Friedman says of her new work, “I’m giving voice to remarkable people who time will erase otherwise, ordinary men and women who changed history. Like chimes after midnight, theirs are the voices you would not hear — people in the dark.” Ronee Blakley Singer songwriter, actor, filmmaker, composer, poet. The Oscars, Golden Globes and Grammy nominee starred on Robert Altman’s Nashville, for which she appeared on cover of Newsweek. She was featured in Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue in the 1970s and appeared on the hit single “Hurricane.” She also appeared in A Nightmare on Elm Street. Blakley has released twelve albums. She has appeared in films with Wim Wenders, Nick Ray, Walter Hill, Robert Altman and Dylan Tony Gilkyson Born in Hollywood and reared in northern New Mexico, Tony Gilkyson writes songs that speak of ghosts, travels, dreams, and landscapes. A songwriter-guitarist, Tony began recording at a young age with his father, Terry Gilkyson. He has collaborated with songwriters John Doe and Chuck E. Weiss, as well as authors Diane Stillman (29 Palms) and Michael Blake (Dances with Wolves). His musical style blends rock, folk, and Americana, with a distinctive guitar sound that combines traditional and modern influences. Throughout his career, Tony has worked with artists such as Dave Alvin, Lone Justice, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Bob Dylan, Kris Kristofferson, K.D. Lang, and X. His guitar work has been featured in film soundtracks like Walk the Line, The Big Lebowski, All the King's Men, and Don’t Come Knockin’, with producer T Bone Burnett  Hollywood Highsteppers The Hollywood Highsteppers is a class taught at the Silverlake Conservatory of Music, a nonprofit music school serving the Silver Lake/Hollywood/Los Feliz neighborhoods. The class formed in 2019 under the direction of Michael Bolger and serves as a community band. It’s an all-ages ensemble consisting of sousaphones, drums, flutes, trumpets, trombones, saxophones, accordions, guitar, and singing. Most of the repertoire hails from the Second Line tradition of New Orleans. The band also explores other repertoire including Balkan grooves, pop songs, and funk. The Highsteppers recorded a track on a soon to be released album featuring ensembles of the Silverlake Conservatory. They march in community parades like the Doo Dah parade and the Venice Mardi Gras parade. The class is growing and bringing joy to the community.  Ilana Katz Katz Ilana Katz Katz is a blues and Appalachian fiddler, singer, songwriting musical chameleon who has been busking in Boston’s subways since 2008. Known for her signature solo performances, she also lends her fiddling prowess to a plethora of bands, internationally, as a recording artist and special guest. Ilana Katz Katz will fly cross-country to participate in Busk-Aid. The Living Sisters Eleni Mandell and Becky Stark concocted the idea of singing together over cocktails at Little Joy back in the day. Both had been pursuing solo careers as singer-songwriters but both dreamed of a side project focused on harmonizing. Becky already had the name ready and The Living Sisters were born. Their charming, heartfelt and, sometimes, goofy songs exist to spread joy, light, and harmony! Later, Inara George and Alex Lilly joined the band but they’ll be out of town during Busk-Aid. Fernando Perdomo Fernando Perdomo  is a multi-instrumentalist, producer, and singer-songwriter originally from Miami, Florida. L.A. Times dubbed him "The Millennial Answer to Todd Rundgren.” He was featured in the movie Echo in the Canyonplaying guitar for Jakob Dylan, Fiona Apple, Beck, Cat Power, Regina Spektor, Brian Wilson and others. He currently is the guitar player for Marshall Crenshaw on tour. He is a prolific recording artist with hundreds of releases available on his Bandcamp Page. He will be releasing 12 albums in 2025 titled Waves 1-12.   Rick Shea Singer, songwriter, and guitarist Rick Shea’s work speaks for itself. He’s played with legends like Dave Alvin (Shea played on his Grammy-winning album), R.E.M. (for the soundtrack to Man on the Moon) and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member Wanda Jackson among others He cut his teeth in Southern California honky-tonks, and his songs reflect the folk, country, rock and Mexican influences he grew up with. Shea has released 12 albums to wide acclaim (his latest received 4 Stars from Mojo), and toured both the U.S. and Europe. Arielle Silver In the sun-soaked heart of California, Arielle Silver emerges a masterful storyteller, blending the soul of Americana roots with influences drawn equally from Laurel Canyon and Greenwich Village. Silver’s rich lyrics, folk-pop artistry, and enchanting stagecraft has earned her three-time ASCAP Plus Awards, 2025 Winner at the South Florida Folk and Acoustic Music Festival, 2024 and 2025 finalist in the Tucson Folk Festival, second place in the 2024 International Acoustic Music Awards, and among other accolades. Her fifth album, Watershed, premiered in The Bluegrass Situation, Americana Highways, and Twangville, and spent 18 weeks on the Americana Music Charts with adds at over 200 U.S. stations.  Enrich'd White Angeleno noisicians Doten & Sýkora improvise, process then present sound as EW. Gentle nightmare, a bit of psychotic rawk, harsh ambient, who can say? They reintroduce the lost realm of imagination while restoring the false sense of absurdity… doing so since 1985, even. Magickly Delishus  An all- acoustic ensemble of weirdos that plays a mixture of traditional Irish instrumental tunes, murder ballads, and random punk covers. They can frequently be found entertaining and confusing passersby at various neighborhood parks, but they're always down for a good cause. Water Tower Band Water Tower, founded in 2005 by Kenny Feinstein, blends punk energy with bluegrass roots, evolving from The Water Tower Bucket Boys to a Los Angeles-based phenomenon. Their fiercely loyal fanbase, "The Owls," thrives on their DIY ethos, street-busking grit, and explosive live shows. With hits like "AMPM" and "Skante Warrior," they’ve stormed major festivals (IBMA, Telluride, Warped Tour) and toured the UK, sharing stages with legends like Molly Tuttle and Sierra Ferrell. Feinstein’s charismatic emceeing amplifies their rebel spirit. A genre-defying force, Water Tower is bluegrass for the punk generation. Join the revolution. Jon Wahl Jon Wahl was the frontman/founder of LA’s avant-blues Claw Hammer and afterwards his own Amadans, and was part of countless side projects with the likes of Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo), Wayne Kramer (MC5), Ry Cooder, et al. Come see him busk away his latest songs and new twists on older stuff.                                                            # # # QR code for donations via Sweet Relief Musicians Fund below. This code will be posted at all busking locations. Thank you to John Krop (Atomic Pop Monkey) for the flyer art!