Duran Duran will play a special benefit concert next month to raise money for the fight against prostate cancer, in honor of guitarist Andy Taylor, who revealed his own diagnosis last year. The gig will take place at the Guild Theatre in Menlo Park, California, on Aug. 19.
Presale tickets for the Duran Duran VIP Fan Community go on sale July 17 at noon PT with a general on-sale following on July 19 at noon PT. Proceeds will benefit the Cancer Awareness Trust in the U.K. Money will also go to a special treatment that will help patients like Taylor extend their lives. Tickets are available on the Guild Theatre website.
“We are heading to Northern California to play many of the songs that we wrote together with our dear friend, Andy Taylor, to help him and others in their fight against prostate cancer,” frontman Simon Le Bon said in a statement. “It is the right thing to do.”
“We would like to thank our fans and the organizers of this benefit who have given us the chance to help our longtime friend and colleague Andy Taylor,” drummer Roger Taylor (no relation) said. “We have always described ourselves as a ‘band of brothers,’ and that has never been more true than in this very moment.”
Sir Chris Evans, who founded the Cancer Awareness Trust, commented that he was honored to work with the band and to help Andy. “Andy will receive the latest precision medical treatment, emanating from some recently successful clinical trials, along with the ongoing support that the Cancer Awareness Trust is providing,” he said. “The incredible support of Duran Duran will mean many more people will benefit just like Andy has.”
The concert comes just ahead of the kickoff of Duran Duran’s Future Past Tour. Openers for the tour include Nile Rodgers and Chic, Bastille, and at the band’s gig in Queens, New York, at Forest Hills Stadium, Grace Jones.
In November, just as Duran Duran’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Andy Taylor revealed his diagnosis. “Just over four years ago, I was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic prostate cancer,” he wrote in a letter that Le Bon read during the band’s induction. “Many families have experienced the slow burn of this disease and of course, we are no different. So I speak from the perspective of a family man but with profound humility to the band, the greatest fans a group could have, and this exceptional accolade.”