Slipknot, Green Day, Paramore and more to stream live shows for PlayOn charity festival

Slipknot, Green Day, and Paramore are among the bands set to take part in virtual festival PlayOn this weekend (April 24-26).

• Read more: I endured eight gruelling hours of Lady Gaga’s One World: Together At Home’ concert so you didn’t have to

Starting today, Warner Music Group will host a series of live-streamed performances to raise money for the World Health Organisation’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund.

Twenty One Pilots, Korn, Royal Blood, Weezer and more will also feature in PlayOn Fest, which promises “music is NOT cancelled” and boasts the chance to “relive performances from the world’s biggest artists” in a trailer. Watch it below now.

According to organisers, the event “promises to bring energy and high production values from world class stages (including Coachella, Sydney Opera House, Lollapalooza, Apollo Theater, Bonnaroo, The O2 Arena, Primavera Sound, Red Rocks Amphitheater, Rock In Rio, Global Citizen Festival, and more) to music fans hungry for communal live experiences”.

Funds for the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund will be raised through the sale of a range of festival merchandise, as well as a button on Songkick’s YouTube page, where the festival is being hosted. At the time of writing, $2.1 million (£1.8m) has been raised of a targeted $7.5 million (£6.1m).

The live-stream began at 5pm BST with a set from Ed Sheeran and will continue until April 26. Watch it here or embedded above.

PlayOn Fest follows several fundraising live-streams that have been held since the coronavirus pandemic began. Last weekend (April 18), Lady Gaga curated Global Citizen’s One World: Together At Home event, which saw performances from artists including Elton John, Paul McCartney, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong and more.

Meanwhile, Foo Fighters live-streamed their 2006 Hyde Park show earlier tonight. The band aired the ‘In Your Honor’ gig for free on their YouTube page to raise money for MusiCares, a non-profit organisation that provides relief to musicians.

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