A vast array of musicians from around the world have thrown their support behind the inaugural edition of Band Shirt Day. The newly-announced musician holiday is set to take place on 16th September as a global celebration.
Much like Australia’s own Ausmusic T-Shirt Day, which aims to raise money for the music industry charity Support Act, Band Shirt Day is organised by independent non-profit merchandise association MerchFriends. The main point of difference is that while all Ausmusic T-Shirt Day proceeds go to Support Act, the nascent event allows artists to nominate their charity of choice.
The inaugural edition of Band Shirt Day launches next month
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According to the official Band Shirt Day website, it’s a “global fundraising initiative,” which involves artists selling merchandise through their existing sales channels and donating “proceeds to charitable organizations of their choice.”
A large number of artists have thrown their support behind the day, including Blondie, Flipper, Mac DeMarco, The Maine, Parquet Courts, Tori Amos, the Tragically Hip, Urge Overkill, and The Format, whose co-founder Sam Means is behind MerchFriends.
A handful of Australian acts have also joined in, including Dr. Colossus and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, with the former donating a portion of their merch sales to Edgar’s Mission, while the latter will be donating 100% of profits from a soon-to-be-printed shirt to an as-yet unnamed organisation. “Offset the misery of wearing our merch, with the joy of giving to those in need,” joked Dr. Colossus.
Further Reading
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