All-Star MUSE Benefit Concert Partners With StageIt for Live Streaming and MobileCause for Text-2-Give to Support Disaster Relief in Japan and Non-Nuclear Groups Worldwide

LOS ANGELES, July 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- On Sunday August 7, an all-star line-up will perform a benefit concert for Musicians United for Safe Energy (MUSE) at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, CA.  To enhance fundraising efforts for disaster relief in Japan and for organizations worldwide promoting safe, non-nuclear energy, MUSE has partnered with StageIt for live streaming and global online donations, and MobileCause for text-2-give donations and concert updates in the U.S.  Both StageIt (www.stageit.com) and MobileCause (www.mobilecause.com) are now live with the MUSE event, enabling people worldwide to register to view the show and support the cause on the Internet, and to text donations and receive updates via SMS, respectively.

The concert line-up for August 7 includes Crosby, Stills & Nash, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Jason Mraz, The Doobie Brothers, Tom Morello, John Hall, Kitaro, Jonathan Wilson, Sweet Honey in the Rock — with special guests.  The artists will be performing together throughout the show, with Browne and Raitt anchoring part the first set, and Crosby, Stills & Nash closing the show.  The presenting sponsor of the day's events, VantagePoint Capital Partners (www.vpcp.com), is the leading global investor in energy innovation and efficiency.    

"The MUSE concert will not only be a great show, it will hopefully entice the public to become better informed of the tremendous dangers of nuclear power," says Graham Nash.  "We have to keep real and true information flowing so that people can act on it."

"I love the fact that we are able to reach out to everyone in our fan community via posts, tweets, blogs — most of the time this is great for all artists," says Jason Mraz.  "It's also amazing that information can spread rapidly and donations can be taken quickly for Japan disaster victims."

Live-streaming of the MUSE event on StageIt will begin at 2PM (PDT) on August 7, one hour before show-time.  Viewers will have access to exclusive pre-show content including interviews and greetings from the performers, as well as the main feed of the entire concert.  People around the globe can log on to http://bit.ly/musebenefit to pre-register for StageIt's live stream for a minimum $5 donation, with all proceeds benefiting MUSE.  StageIt is also an online donation point for MUSE, and will have links for people — anywhere in the world — to give what they can even if they will not be viewing the stream.  Launched in 2010 by CEO and music industry veteran Evan Lowenstein, StageIt is a web-based platform that allows artists to deliver and monetize live events, and offer unique online fan experiences that will not be archived or duplicated for distribution.

Mobile giving for MUSE is live via MobileCause through its text2give service (U.S. only).  To support Musicians United for Safe Energy and Japan Disaster relief, people may donate by texting MUSE to 80888.  A one-time $10 donation will be added to the user's mobile phone bill (messaging and data rates may apply); complete terms can be found at www.igfn.org/t.   Additionally, people can access the latest MUSE concert updates by texting CONCERT NEWS to 27138.  MobileCause is the leading web-based software solution for mobile giving, and for empowering the non-profit community with innovative and user-friendly mobile communication, CRM, and fundraising technology.  The company was instrumental in disaster relief efforts following the earthquake in Haiti, and has completed more than 4,200 campaigns for almost 1,000 non-profit organizations.

The MUSE benefit was planned shortly after the meltdowns at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.  Shoreline Amphitheatre — the U.S.'s largest green-certified concert venue — was chosen because of its proximity to the Pacific Rim, Northern California's deep association with Japan — and because nuclear reactors on the California coast store spent fuel rods similarly to Fukushima.  The stage will be sustainably powered by an integrated system incorporating solar, biodiesel, wind, and LED technologies.  In addition to raising money for disaster relief in Japan and groups worldwide working to promote safe, non-nuclear energy, the MUSE event was created to heighten awareness about the realities and dangers of nuclear power — and the many safe alternatives available.

For those able to attend the event at Shoreline Amphitheatre in person, reserved seats and lawn tickets are available at Livenation.com, Ticketmaster outlets or through 1-800-745-3000.  Show-time is 3PM, with activities at a multi-exhibitor Clean & Safe Energy Village beginning at 1PM.  Families can bring children 10 and under for free with the purchase of adult lawn tickets. Special Gold and Silver circle seats are available through the Guacamole Fund (www.guacfund.org).

For more information:  

www.musiciansunited4safeenergy.com

www.nukefree.org

SOURCE MUSE