During a recent interview on the podcast “Come On Over,” Sebastian Bach was asked about performing amid the devastating fires that raged throughout Los Angeles this month.
“It is completely fun, and people are sad and maybe just for an hour and a half, they can forget about the misery for a little bit,” the singer said. “I know they can’t forget about it, but it reminds me of 9/11. I mean that totally disrupted my rock and roll.”
Bach continued, adding that while he may not be able to donate money to the victims, he thinks music can do a lot to heal people as they move forward.
“I didn’t feel like rocking and rolling when that went down, but then Bruce Springsteen and the Who did that benefit concert for the survivors of the Twin Towers and everything.”
“So rock even brought some sense to that, and Metallica just gave half a million. I’m not going to be giving half a million [laughs]. I’ll give you half a million laughs,” Bach added, laughing.
Metallica recently announced they have donated $500,000 to aid those affected by the fires through their organization All Within My Hands. The money will be supporting the California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Recovery Fund and the Pasadena Community Foundation’s Eaton Canyon Fire Relief and Recovery Fund.
“The fires raging in the Los Angeles area have relentlessly wreaked havoc and widespread destruction since January 7 and, sadly, do not show signs of slowing down,” the organization said in a statement. “Despite containment progress over the weekend, officials warn residents to stay vigilant as the Santa Ana winds return and are expected to reach up to 70 MPH over the coming days, creating critical fire conditions.
“In the past week, the community has suffered at least 24 lives lost, nearly 100,000 people under evacuation orders, 40,000 acres burned, and more than 12,000 structures—commercial and residential—destroyed. However, numbers cannot articulate the magnitude of anguish as the disaster upends families and dismantles livelihoods.”
The statement further read, “All Within My Hands is granting $500,000 to relief efforts carried out by the California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Recovery Fund and the Pasadena Community Foundation’s Eaton Canyon Fire Relief and Recovery Fund.”
