Bruce Springsteen Strikes a Chord for WHY

New York, NY — Bruce Springsteen – the most prominent member of WHY's Artists Against Hunger & Poverty Program (AAHP) – has once again proven himself one of the biggest advocates for people in poverty. An artist-citizen in the great tradition of WHY co-founder Harry Chapin, Springsteen performed a rehearsal concert to benefit the organization.

Springsteen and WHY share a commitment to fighting hunger and poverty in the U.S. and abroad. Through AAHP, WHY and dedicated artist-citizens have raised awareness and more than .5 million for more than 500 anti-poverty organizations in the US. Springsteen has raised money and awareness for WHY and has given considerably to community-based organizations in WHY’s Reinvesting in America network. These organizations address the underlying causes of hunger and poverty by providing education, life skills, job training, community economic development, health care, child care, housing and transportation, among other services, to their clients and communities in need. They are feeding America’s hungry and moving people out of poverty.

Springsteen’s April 21 benefit rehearsal concert was the official kick-off for his tour in support of his new album Devils & Dust. The tour – which kicks off on April 25 in Detroit – will be entirely solo, and Springsteen will perform in theaters and in arenas scaled down to theater format. The benefit rehearsal concert was one such venue – the New Paramount Theater in Asbury Park, NJ.

The Devils & Dust Tour will play for a month in the U.S. and a month in Europe. WHY has connected Springsteen with community-based organizations and each will receive a pair of tickets to auction off. Each venue will have a table for volunteers from the organizations to set up and pass out literature, and collect monetary donations.

The following organizations will benefit from the tour: April 25 in Detroit, MI – Capuchin Soup Kitchen, (Detroit, MI); April 28 in Dallas, TX – North Texas Food Bank (Dallas, TX); April 30 in Phoenix, AR –The Bridge (Phoenix, AZ); May 2 in Los Angeles, CA – Los Angeles Regional Food Bank (Los Angeles, CA); May 3 in Los Angeles, CA – P.A.T.H – People Assisting The Homeless (Los Angeles, CA); May 5 in Oakland, CA – People’s Grocery (Oakland, CA); May 7 in Denver, CO – Food Bank Of The Rockies; May 10 in St. Paul, MN – Second Harvest Heartland (St. Paul, MN); May 11 Chicago, IL – Greater Chicago Food Depository (Chicago, IL); May 14 in Fairfax, VA – DC Central Kitchen (Washington, DC); May 15 in Cleveland, OH – Cleveland Food Bank (Cleveland, OH); May 17 in Philadelphia, PA – Greater Philadelphia Food Bank (Philadelphia, PA); May 19 in East Rutherford, NJ – Community Food Bank Of NJ (Hillside, NJ); and May 20 in Boston, MA – The Greater Boston Food Bank (Boston, MA).

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WHY is a nonprofit organization co-founded by the late singer-songwriter Harry Chapin, and radio talk show host and present Executive Director Bill Ayres in 1975. WHY attacks the root causes of hunger and poverty by promoting effective and innovative community-based solutions that create self-reliance, economic justice and food security