An eight-hour blues benefit gig to help the homeless will be held in Williamstown on Saturday, with all proceeds going to the Anonymous X charity.
Greg Dodd & The Hoodoo Men will perform, alongside seven other bands, including Chris Finnen & The Melbourne Blues Disciples.
Dodd started the Blues for Lost Souls music charity event in 2013.
“I wanted to start an event that would help homeless people,” he said.
“So, what I do every year is, get my friends to come on board and we all get together and our respective bands play … we raise money, and we also raise lots of donations as far as food and clothes and things like that.
“This year, I’m asking for donations of tinned food for animals, as well, because a lot of homeless people have pets.”
Since Dodd’s event started, his muso friends in East Gippsland and Bendigo have held sister events, with all proceeds donated to Anonymous X.
“I suppose we always try to do better than last year,” Dodd said. “Last year we raised $36,100.
“The charity I support, Anonymous X, needed a transit van to transport all their goods around because they were doing it in cars.
“We spent $34,500 on a van, which now is delivering much-needed goods to those people on the street.
“The money that’s raised, there’s no middle man – it goes straight to the charity Anonymous X … that money is used straight away and goes directly to people on the street.”
Blues for Lost Souls will run from 3-11pm on August 6 at Williamstown RSL Club. Tickets $50.
Information: facebook.com/BluesForLostSouls/events
