New Jersey has been tremendously impacted by the coronavirus pandemic: New York is the only state with more confirmed COVID-19 cases. In light of that, the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund was formed, and one of their first public efforts came to fruition last night: The “Jersey 4 Jersey” livestream benefit event was hosted last night, and it featured performances from some famous New Jersey natives.
Bruce Springsteen, perhaps the most famous Jersey hometown hero of the past half-century, was joined by his wife and E Street Band member Patti Scialfa for a performance of “Land Of Hope And Dreams,” as well as a cover of Tom Waits’ “Jersey Girl.”
Fountains Of Wayne also staged a reunion, with Sharon Van Etten taking the place of the recently deceased Adam Schlesinger for a performance of “Hackensack.”
Goddamn if I didn’t lose it when Fountains of Wayne came on with “Hackensack” just weeks after Adam Schlesinger died. #Jersey4Jersey pic.twitter.com/JUkOXEGf9g
— Scott Fallon (@NewsFallon) April 22, 2020
The star-studded lineup also featured SZA, Halsey, and Charlie Puth.
Finally // Beautiful Stranger 💫💗 #Jersey4Jersey #Halsey @halsey pic.twitter.com/wlsSSMdsyY
— jessica 🖤 (@jess_robyn) April 22, 2020
https://www.instagram.com/tv/B_TTnjAjBa7/
Jon Bon Jovi recently spoke with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe about organizing the show and explained how he came to be involved, saying, “The governor is a local, he lives right near me here in Jersey. His wife had come to me and said, ‘We have to do something specific for New Jersey because it’s the second-hardest hit state in the nation, and a lot of small businesses and working people are wondering where that next paycheck’s coming from, because they’ve either been furloughed or laid off, and they’re not sure when they’ll get back to work.’ […] I was tasked with curating this show. The obvious and easiest first phone call was to the king of New Jersey, and he said yes. […] Bruce signed on quick.”
Check out highlights from the livestream above.
