JOIN BETTER THAN EZRA, FEATURING MARK MCGRATH, PIN STRIPE BRASS BAND, JOSH MARTIN & WHERE Y’ACHT FOR THE 16TH ANNUAL BTE FOUNDATION FUNRAISER BENEFIT CONCERT
New Orleans, LA — New Orleans platinum rock stars Better Than Ezra will host their 16th Annual Better Than Ezra Funraiser charity event sponsored by Ochsner and Raising Cane’s on Saturday, April 21, 2018 at Tipitina’s Uptown in New Orleans. This year’s event will kick off with the VIP Patron Party next door at The Tchoup House, sponsored by Abita Brewery with music by the Pin Stripe Brass Band. The main event at Tipitina’s will follow and will include silent auction, live auction and Better Than Ezra benefit concert featuring Mark McGrath, also including a performance by Josh Martin. Rounding out the night will be the After-Auction Party with Where Y’Acht.
“We could not be more excited about all of the special guests joining us for our annual charity
event,” says Tom Drummond, bass player and founding member of Better Than Ezra. “We have put together another great lineup of entertainment this year. Our Funraiser is such an important part of our efforts to give back to our community and it would not be as successful as it is without having our special guests here. We are all looking forward to another great event, especially at this year’s new venue, Tipitina’s.”
The VIP Patron Party, sponsored by Abita Brewery, will kick off the evening at 5:30pm next
door to Tip’s at The Tchoup House and will feature music by Pin Stripe Brass Band. The Patron Party will feature open bar and food from New Orleans’ finest restaurants, including Galatoire’s, Restaurant Revolution, Acme Oyster House, Drago’s, Tommy’s Cuisine, La Thai and award winning Hogs’ Team Boar’s Nest. Attendees will also enjoy early admission, private viewing, private bars and exclusive access to meet and take photos with the band and celebrity guests.
Pin Stripe Brass Band is part of the New Orleans brass band revival, which began in the mid 1960’s and continues to this day. Their music is not confined entirely to the street, as they are capable of performing as a small Jazz band as well.
The doors to Tipitina’s for the BTE Foundation ‘Funraiser’ will open at 7pm. All general
admission guests will also have the opportunity to bid on fabulous items in both live and silent
auctions. The benefit concert will start at 7:45 with performances by Better Than Ezra, featuring Mark McGrath and Josh Martin. The night will be capped off by the After-Auction Party with Where Y’Acht.
This summer, Mark McGrath will be touring with the I Love the 90’s tour as well as a robust
schedule of live Sugar Ray dates and looks forward to seeing everyone out on the road. In past
summers Mark created, branded and toured on the Under the Sun Tour, which showcases the
most iconic hits and artist of the 90’s. “This is my life’s work,” he notes “and I’m honored that
these songs I wrote have such a connection and meaning to people. No need to ask me how long I’ll be doing this, I can’t imagine a life without performing these songs, and thankfully they seem to have a timeless quality.”
Josh Martin, a singer songwriter from Baton Rouge, grew up in a home that listened to a broad range of musical genres. This shaped his craft and he discovered his own voice as a singer and guitar player. Martin is currently embarking on his debut record, still untitled. Through his music he aspires to empathize, inspire, give a little hope, but through it all have a good time!
Where Y’acht is a New Orleans Yacht Rock cover band, playing smooth music from the late 70’s and early 80’s. “We are the greatest yacht rock band in the world. Playing only the smoothest tunes from the 70s and 80s, we’re Bernard Purdie sure you’ll enjoy every velvety second of what we do”.
The Better Than Ezra Foundation has raised over $1,700,000 for various causes in and around
New Orleans. They have worked with the Preservation Resource Center to renovate and rebuild a first responder’s flooded home from Katrina, the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) to aid the Summer Program for students, Brad Pitt’s Make it Right Foundation to help rebuild homes in the Lower 9th Ward neighborhood, and the Audubon Nature Institute to build the Cool Zoo Splash Park at Audubon Zoo, while also offering support to the Louisiana SPCA, Crime-Stoppers and the ALS/Team Gleason Initiative.
Most recently, the BTE Foundation has adopted and continues to support the Mary McLeod
Bethune Elementary School of Literature and Technology in New Orleans. They have donated
school supplies and built an educational playground for the children. The Foundation is most
excited about the creation and funding of their music, arts and education after-school program
that runs Monday-Friday throughout the school year and currently has over 100 students
enrolled. The BTE Foundation’s continued support not only established these great programs
that benefit so many kids, it also keeps them operating successfully year after year.
“Our Foundation has been around since 2007, and we are extremely excited about this year’s
Funraiser,” says Kevin Griffin, lead singer and founding member of Better Than Ezra.
“Through the years since we started our foundation, we’ve supported many great causes, but the work that we do to locally support after school music programs really reaches to the core of what we hope to accomplish giving back in our community. Our annual ‘Funraiser’ is the biggest source of funding for these crucial educational programs and we hope to continue the momentum of this event’s enormous success.”
To purchase tickets to the Better Than Ezra Foundation ‘Funraiser’ VIP Patron Party or General Admission Benefit Concert, please visit:
https://btefoundation.org/events/bte-funraiser-april-21st/
For more information on the 16th Annual ‘Funraiser’ charity event, the Better Than Ezra
Foundation and its’ causes, or to inquire about sponsorship opportunities, please visit:
https://btefoundation.org
ABOUT BETTER THAN EZRA FOUNDATION
The Better Than Ezra Foundation, founded by platinum selling rock band Better Than Ezra, is
committed to raising funds to support the renewal of the structural and cultural heritage as well as education in New Orleans and Southern Louisiana. Since its’ inception, the Better Than Ezra Foundation has raised over $1,700,000 for various causes in and around New Orleans.