Alesso, Danny Ocean, Diego Torres, José Luis Rodríguez “El Puma”, Luis Fonsi, Maluma, and Paulina Rubio are among a long line-up of artists invited to perform for Venezuela Aid Live, a concert organized by entrepreneur Richard Branson to raise funds for humanitarian aid to save a country he says is on the brink of starvation. The concert will be live-streamed around the world.

Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to attend a live concert for migrants fleeing from political violence and hunger in Venezuela or have been impacted by Nicolás Maduro’s blockade on humanitarian aid coming into the country. 

“We must break this impasse or soon many Venezuelans will be on the verge of starvation or death,” warns the Virgin Atlantic founder, Branson, in a video created to help raise awareness for the mounting distress in the region.

Venezuela’s mounting political and economic unrest, crime, violence and lack of daily necessities such as food and medicine affects those from the very young to the very old. Some people have been left without a home or proper health care and millions are on the move, in what the United Nations calls one of Latin America’s largest mass population movements in history.

“Not that long ago, it was the wealthiest country in South America. Now it is facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the Western Hemisphere,” says Branson. 

Over three million Venezuelans have been displaced in the region and the number is increasing steadily by the thousands every day.

This concert, only weeks in the making came to be when Leopoldo Lopes, an opposition leader, currently under house arrest in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, asked for help to organize a concert to bring global attention to the crisis and to raise funds for essential humanitarian aid, says Branson.

Venezuela is now poised for intervention in the form of an historic concert that will take place on February 22 in Cúcuta, Colombia, on Venezuela’s border. Branson has invited 32 artists to perform for a life-changing free event at the Tienditas Bridge.

“Music has no borders. It is a universal language that can give relief when people fall short of words,” said Ronald Day, the executive VP of programming for Telemundo Networks. 

Yesterday, the Spanish-language media network NBCUniversal Telemundo announced wall-to-wall coverage of Venezuela Aid Live. The concert will be live-streamed around the world through the company’s expansive distribution system to reach viewers online, on their national networks and local cable television stations. They are number one for reach to Hispanics and millennials online and enter 94 per cent of Spanish-speaking households via television in the US.

Telemundo will offer full coverage of the benefit concert, which is drawing comparisons to the Bob Geldof Live Aid event for Ethiopian famine relief in 1985, from the media.

The network will also broadcast “Música por Venezuela” (Music for Venezuela) a special show hosted by Telemundo’s Rodner Figueroa live from Colombia at 1 p.m./12 CT and offer additional programming on the day after the concert.

Venezuela Live Aid is expected to raise $100 million in 60 days to reopen Venezuela´s border so humanitarian aid can reach millions of people. 

The UN says it hopes to help 3.6 million Venezuelans, including two million children, and is appealing for $110 million.

Music for Venezuela Live Aid Concert Coverage on Feb. 22 and 23

Lists of artists invited to perform at Live Aid Venezuela:
Among the performers invited by business magnate Richard Branson

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Venezuela Live Aid on TV: The Telemundo network’s special coverage kicks off on Friday, Feb 22 live from 7 AM/6 CT on “Un Nuevo Día” and continues throughout the day and Telemundo local stations. See schedule below. You can join the social conversation and use the hashtags: #AidVenezuela #AyudaVenezuela.

“Música por Venezuela” (Music for Venezuela): Live from Colombia at 1 PM/12 CT on Telemundo, the show is hosted by Rodner Figueroa. You can join the social conversation and use the hashtag: #MusicaPorVenezuela.

Online streaming: The whole concert will be streamed live via Telemundo.com on Friday, Feb 22 from 11 AM ET/10 CT/8 PT to 4:30 PM ET/3:30 CT/1:30 PT. #MusicaPorVenezuela.

Following the live broadcast, Telemundo will present highlights of the concert on “Lo Mejor de Música por Venezuela” (The Best of Music for Venezuela) in a special two-hour program hosted by “Al Rojo Vivo’s” Rodner Figueroa on Saturday, Feb 23 at 2 PM/1 CT.

Coverage highlights:

Friday, February 22

• 7 AM/6 CT: Coverage will kick-off on “Un Nuevo Día” with Camilo Montoya reporting from Cúcuta, Colombia.
• 11 AM ET/10 CT/8 PT: Telemundo.com starts streaming the full concert.
• 12 PM/11 AM CT: Local noon newscasts followed by “Noticias Telemundo Mediodía” will feature special concert content including on-site reports from Noticias Telemundo’s correspondent Rogelio Mora-Tagle.
• 1 PM/12 CT: “Música por Venezuela,” a special show hosted by “Al Rojo Vivo’s” Rodner Figueroa live from Colombia.
• 3 PM/2 CT: “Suelta la Sopa” to feature special “Venezuela Live Aid” coverage. 
• 4 PM/3 CT: “Al Rojo Vivo con María Celeste” correspondent Rodner Figueroa to offer live reports from the concert venue.
• 6:30 PM/5:30 CT: “Noticias Telemundo” Nightly News to feature reports by Rogelio Mora-Tagle.  

Saturday, February 23

• 2 PM/1 CT: “Lo Mejor de Música por Venezuela (The Best of Music for Venezuela),” a special two-hour show hosted by “Al Rojo Vivo’s” Rodner Figueroa to feature the best highlights of “Live Aid Venezuela.”

by Cherryl Bird – Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Twitter @ladycbird | Instagram @cherrylbird

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