BIMM students raise almost £1000 in HOT VOX’s RISING for War Child campaign
Throughout weekends in early July, BIMM students took part in HOT VOX’s RISING campaign to raise much-needed funds for War Child’s Coronavirus Crisis Appeal.
Talented musicians from our London, Bristol and Birmingham colleges volunteered to perform in the virtual shows, organised by HOT VOX (which aims to showcase emerging artists) on 3rd and 4th, plus 11th July – raising £935 for War Child, to help children in the worst-hit countries in Yemen, Central African Republic, Afghanistan and other conflict zones around the world, facing crisis, food insecurity and desperation following the pandemic. Unrest is also causing huge increases in local violence and child exploitation. These funds raised by our students, live streaming from their living rooms, will help the charity to assist their vital work – taking the total raised so far to their Coronavirus Crisis Appeal to over £67,000!
“We’ve always admired the sheer talent that emerges from BIMM Institutes,” Megan Lawrenson, Senior Promoter for HOT VOX says. “We’ve had some incredibly memorable shows with BIMM students and alumni over the years and we’re really excited to be working with the next crop of talented acts BIMM has produced as part of the RISING for War Child series.”
“I wanted to get involved because I miss live gigs and to have the chance to sing for an amazing charity!”, Popular Music Performance (Vocals) student Jade Kelly who performed her modern RnB/ pop with an urban twist for the campaign explains. “I’m completely blown away by the amount we collectively raised. To be a part of that is something I’ll never forget.”
“Me and my bandmate Sammy thought that is was an amazing opportunity to get involved with – especially in these times when you might feel stuck at home and not playing any live gigs or just in general feeling like you don’t really have that many options to get involved in projects,” BIMM London Songwriting student Hedda Berg, one half of folk-inspired harmony band Lady Sybil says. “We’re so happy to have been given the opportunity to raise money for a great cause like War Child!”
Fellow BIMM London student Ismena Kolbe who is going into her third year of studying Professional Musicianship (Vocals), was also delighted to be involved. “I’ve always wanted to help those less unfortunate, and use my privilege in a right way, so I knew I had to help and thanks to BIMM and HOT VOX, I could help War Child UK which is an amazing organisation that I’ve been familiar with for a couple of years now,” Ismena, who focuses on the themes of mental health, nostalgia and melancholy through her indie, electronic and acoustic sound says. “Some may say that almost £1000 is not a lot of money, but it really can change lives. I’m so proud of everyone that took part and those who could donate, given that now there are huge financial struggles for many, some still chose to help, and that’s really admirable!”
“It’s great that a decent amount of money has been raised for the cause and I read that outside of BIMM around £70,000 had been raised in total as part of the whole RISING series which is truly phenomenal,” Diploma Songwriting student, Lochlan Shaw, who performed his acoustic pop for the RISING campaign says. “I’m happy to have made my contribution to that, and I am grateful for everyone that tuned in to my live stream to donate to the cause and to support me- I am really very grateful for all the kind people that gave me their encouragement and for those that were able to donate as well. I had a great time, and it was a really nice thing to be a part of.”
Pop-rock artist, Charles Hibberd who studies Songwriting at BIMM London also performed – and enjoyed taking part: “I wanted to get involved with the event because I think they are a fantastic organisation who do amazing work. I’ve done some events that War Child have been involved with in the past with other projects and they were fantastic – I hold War Child and the work they do in high regard and it was a pleasure to be asked to be involved with my own project.”
“We wanted to get involved with War Child as it was a great opportunity and it’s a very important cause, as a band we are honoured to get involved,” explains BIMM Bristol’s Alannah (Songwriting) and Felicity (Drums) Jackson, a.k.a Miss Kill (who describe their sound as ‘dirty garage’).
Bristol Songwriting student Olivia Rose, who performed her bright, electronic and soulful songs for the event wanted to take part to help others. “I have recently helped out in Charity events, for example, the proceeds of my recent single ‘Wait’ are going to Black Minds Matter UK. War Child UK is a great cause which I wanted to be a part of,” she says, “Doing good for others is a great feeling and I hope to help out again.”
“I wanted to get involved with the War Child event because it’s a very important cause,” Popular Music Performance & Event Management student Spence, explains. “So many children are affected by negative situations when it’s not even their fault so if any of us can help their life to be better, then hopefully, in time, the world will be a better place. It feels amazing to be part of this project, and I thank everyone who donated to help people in this very unstable world.”
Well done to those artists who took part! We look forward to seeing our students get involved with more opportunities, such as RISING for War Child, soon.
