U2's The Edge Reflects on New Orleans' Music Rising Charity

10 years ago Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, leaving behind a trail of destruction that The Edge of U2 would soon witness firsthand during a visit to New Orleans’ hard hit 9th Ward. Moved by the devastation suffered by the local musical community, Edge teamed with legendary producer Bob Ezrin, Gibson Guitars, MusiCares and the Guitar Center Foundation to provide immediate aid to the musicians whose lives and livelihoods had sustained the most damage when the levees broke. In short order, efforts including donations of net proceeds from the sales of Gibson and Epiphone Music Rising special edition guitars and the providing of musical instruments to professionals whose gear was destroyed in the storm were implemented. In a PSA at the time, Edge explained the helplessness he would have felt in the face of such overwhelming loss as Music Rising replaced thousands of instruments in what would ultimately be the first phase of its still ongoing and continually expanding mission.

Reflecting on the 10-year journey of Music Rising, The Edge commented: Music is at the core of these communities. It’s an essential part of their identities, their hearts and their lives. So when these centers of musical culture are damaged, getting the music going again is a crucial part of the healing process.

With Music Rising, we and our partners continue to do everything in our power to help support this centuries old music culture so it can do its magic for many generations to come.

Shell Shocked and the Murder Capital of the USA

New Orleans is the murder capital of the United States. For the last decade, statistics have shown murder rates four to six times higher than the national average. Shell Shocked (releasing September 8, 2015 from Passion River) starts at the surface of New Orleans’ murder epidemic and delves

into the hearts and minds of those whose lives are most deeply impacted—the youth who live in fear of violence, the parents who grieve a wound that will never fully heal, and the mentors who are saving lives. The film lays out the big picture of a city plagued by violence; it will describe, in simplified terms, how children’s lives are shaped by family, schools, poverty, and a stressed criminal justice system; and, finally, move to solutions related to individual, community, and administrative choices.


Shell Shocked seeks to boil this situation down to its core: violence is causing unbearable loss, youth need to know that someone cares, and mentoring makes a difference. The film will argue, through the voices of those who are most invested, that this is NOT too complex a problem to address and fix. Though this story is grounded in New Orleans, several voices bridge the connection between New Orleans and other cities where long-term disenfranchisement and access to arms has become a common lethal combination. Shell Shocked is used as a tool to facilitate conversations about the causes and devastating impact of gun violence and to open paths for communication and change.