For King & Country host free concert to benefit Ukrainian refugees
For King & Country announced that they're uniting with humanitarian aid organization Convoy Of Hope to raise money for Ukrainian refugees by hosting a free benefit concert Thursday night.
The Grammy Award-winning duo released their new album What Are We Waiting For? earlier this month, which landed at No. 7 on the Billboard 200 charts and No. 2 overall on Billboard’s Top Album Sales Chart. It’s the second Top 10 album for the brothers, Joel and Luke Smallbone.
To celebrate their success, the Christian band is hosting a free concert special that will be broadcast online as they perform hits from their new album live from the Mojave desert in California. Funds raised from viewer donations will go to Convoy Of Hope and their work in aiding Ukrainian refugees in Eastern Europe.
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"For KING + COUNTRY have an incredible following and for them to call on their fans to partner with Convoy of Hope to help our Ukrainian brothers and sisters really speaks to their hearts,” Hal Donaldson, president and co-founder of Convoy of Hope, told The Christian Post.
“Through their special concert event, Joel and Luke will enable Convoy to continue to deliver the help, and the hope, that is needed in and around Ukraine for the long term. We can't wait to see how God is going to use this concert to ease suffering," he added.
The concert will feature all of the band's new material from the album. It will air at 8 p.m. ET Thursday on Facebook and YouTube.
“The money they are helping to raise will bring much-needed relief to people inside Ukraine and refugees in the countries surrounding it,” Donaldson added in a statement shared with CP.
Convoy of Hope says their partners across Europe are using the aid they provide to shelter refugees and distribute food, water, hygiene kits and other necessities to those who were forced to flee their homes in Ukraine due to the Russian military's invasion. Convoy of Hope said they have teams providing emergency relief to refugees in five Eastern European countries that are caring for women, children and elderly individuals as many Ukrainian men carry on fighting for their country.
“We’ve put together a special performance from the Mojave Desert playing a good portion of the new record to celebrate and commemorate the launch, and also raise funding for Convoy of Hope as they bring supplies and shelter to Ukrainian refugees in several countries,” for King & Country added.
What Are We Waiting For? centers around a trio of timely topics for an album forged as the U.S. struggled with political tensions, racial divisions and a pandemic.
The single “Relate” became the duo’s first track off the record to reach No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Christian Songs chart this year. The song highlights the ongoing search for compassion and empathy amid differences, a message both “Unity” and “Together” also promote.
In a recent interview with The Christian Post, Luke explained why the duo get involved in social issues.
"Social issues are essentially personal issues just multiplied,” the artist told CP.
“So if you're not talking about some social issues, then in some cases, you're actually not talking about personal issues. At the end of the day, 'Unity' or 'Relate' is a personal struggle. If you multiply it by the thousands, it becomes a social issue."
Christians should look at social issues as a result of “brokenness,” he continued.
"So when I talk about unity, I need to be unified with people that I disagree with [first],” Smallbone declared. “It doesn't necessarily mean you don't call spade a spade on certain issues. I'm not saying that. But I am saying there are always places to be able to find some commonality, some common ground.”
"Waiting For? | The Worldwide Special" will be live on Facebook and Youtube.
Jeannie Ortega Law is a reporter for The Christian Post. Reach her at: [email protected] She's also the author of the book, What Is Happening to Me? How to Defeat Your Unseen Enemy Follow her on Twitter: @jlawcp Facebook: JeannieOMusic
