Concert for Carolina raises $24.5 million for Helene relief

CHARLOTTE — Millions of dollars will go toward Helene recovery after Saturday’s “Concert for Carolina” benefit show.

At the end of the concert at Bank of America Stadium, organizers announced they had raised $24,513,185. They also said the show drew 82,193 fans.

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Country music stars Eric Church and Luke Combs headlined the event with a lot of other favorites, including James Taylor, Keith Urban, Scotty McCreery, Sheryl Crow, and the Avett Brothers.

The crowd turned out despite the severe weather that pushed through the area Saturday night. The stadium had to implement its severe weather protocol, which delayed the concert by about two hours.

Before the show, Channel 9 caught up with Carolina natives and performers Eric Church and Luke Combs. Church is from Granite Falls in Caldwell County while Combs was born in Huntersville and raised in Asheville. They talked about why the concert was so important.

“They are the exact community that when the community next door is in trouble, you can count on that community to come help you,” Church said. “In this situation, there is no community next door, it’s all been destroyed. What you are seeing tonight is we are the community next door, the people in that stadium are the community next door.”

“Just being able to give those people an hour, two hours of joy amidst such chaos and tragedy is something that I’m really, really proud of,” Combs said.

There are many ways you can help Helene victims. Concert for Carolina is still accepting donations, and so is Channel 9 in partnership with the Red Cross.

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