Neil Young To Return To The Stage For The First Time Since 2019
Canadian-American singer/songwriter Neil Young is returning to the stage for the first time this spring since 2019, after which the Covid-19 pandemic kicked in worldwide.
The veteran musician will headline an autism fundraiser alongside Stephen Stills. The ‘Light Up The Blues’ charity show is set to take
place at the Greek Theatre on April 22.
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Young has opted not to perform throughout the pandemic as a vocal proponent of Covid-19 caution and vaccine education, and continues to boycott Spotify over Covid misinformation.
He pulled out of Farm Aid as recently as last September, at a time when much of the music industry had returned to business as usual, lifting mandatory masking and other precautions. “I don’t think it is safe in the pandemic,” Young said at the time, writing to a fan on his website. “I miss it very much.”
The Stills family has been running the annual Light Up the Blues concert since 2013, until Covid began.
Young told Rolling Stone, “We’ll be there to ‘Light up the Blues’ with Stephen, [his wife] Kristen, and the family, doing our first show in four years with old friends for our autistic people around the world.”
Young and Stills will headline the concert together, backed by Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real. More guests for the evening will be announced in the coming weeks.
Opera singer Amanda Anderson, rapper Soul Shocka, and other artists on the autism spectrum will perform, RS notes. The show is slated to benefit charity Autism Speaks.
Young released shelved 2001 Crazy Horse album Toast last July via Reprise Records.
“Toast is an album that stands on its own in my collection,” Young said last year. “Unlike any other, Toast was so sad that I couldn’t put it out. I just skipped it and went on to do another album in its place. I couldn’t handle it at that time. 2001.”
Buy Neil Young vinyl and merch at the Dig! store.