WILMINGTON — Tuesday night’s benefit concert at Greenfield Lake Amphitheater featuring acclaimed country rockers Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real raised over $66,000 for charities involved with Hurricane Florence relief efforts.
The concert began with Mayor Bill Saffo awarding Nelson a key to the city, then yelling “Rock on!” as he left the stage.
“When I heard that Wilmington had been hit really hard, the first thing I thought of was how many amazing people we know there who have come out in the last few years to see us,” Lukas said in an Instagram post following the concert.
The show, held at Greenfield Lake Amphitheater, came together through the friendship of Nelson and local radio host Beau Gunn.
“Lukas reached out of nowhere, and when dates didn’t align he wouldn’t let it go,” Gunn said.
Nelson had accompanied his dad Willie to Los Angeles the night before the concert for an appearance with late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel. He then took a red-eye flight to Wilmington and “came in and crushed the show,” according to Gunn, general manager and DJ at 98.3 The Penguin.
“We’ve shared drinks and laughter, surfed and jammed and every time we play there at the [Greenfield Lake Amphitheater], it sells out. So, I called my buddy Beau Gunn at Penguin Radio and asked what we could do to help,” Nelson said.
“There was a full moon that night, just pure electricity in the air. I’ve been a part of a lot of events but I’m not sure I’ve ever experienced something that gratifying,” Gunn said.
Nelson performed his own originals and covered his dad’s “Angel Flying too Close to the Ground,” Tom Petty’s “Breakdown,” and Paul Simon’s “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes.”
The event sold out all 1,200 seats in the first eight hours of availability, according to a press release, and all proceeds will go to the following charities to support Florence relief initiatives: Nourish NC, Salvation Army of Cape Fear, Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina at Wilmington, Good Shepherd Center, Cape Fearless Challenge, and The Harrelson Center.
The concert was produced by Live Nation and 98.3 The Penguin.
Editor’s note: 98.3 The Penguin and Port City Daily share a parent company, Local Voice Media.
Mark Darrough can be reached at Mark@Localvoicemedia.com
