Las Vegas rockers The Killers and Imagine Dragons are teaming up to co-headline a benefit for the victims of last month’s (Oct17) festival massacre in the city.
Almost 60 people were shot and killed when a gunman opened fire at the open-air Route 91 Harvest Festival, and now the city’s most famous bands are joining forces to remember the dead.
The two bands will be joined by soul trio Boyz II Men and Las Vegas-based entertainers David Copperfield and Penn and Teller for the T-Mobile Arena concert on 1 December (17) – the two month anniversary of the massacre.
Proceeds will benefit the Las Vegas Victims Fund.
The Killers star Brandon Flowers was flying home to Las Vegas when he checked out the city’s famous Strip from his plane window hours before chaos erupted.
In a statement released on Facebook days after the massacre, he wrote: “I flew over my hometown (and) forehead to the window I looked down on Las Vegas and felt a prick of nostalgia. I thought about my mother buried below, I thought about my friends in Henderson, and I even traced Flamingo road down to where it meets the 95 and pin pointed my high school, Chaparral.
“I could see the city as a whole, but I couldn’t look close enough to see what was about to unfold. It’s hard to believe it’s real. My prayers go out to those whose lives were taken and to everyone else affected by this nightmare.”
He added: “My heart swells when I hear the stories of people putting their lives on the line to help each other – defying the stereotypes of what people say Las Vegas is all about. We’re all long lost brothers and sisters. I miss my town, I miss my mom, I miss these victims I didn’t even know, but I look forward to getting together with you real soon to keep their memory alive.”