Foo Fighters will be taking a break from the recording of their upcoming fourth album to play a special one-off benefit for MAP (Musicians’ Assistance Program). MAP is a nonprofit organization founded in 1992 by Buddy Arnold and his wife Carole Fields to provide treatment for musicians addicted to drugs and alcohol.
The February 7th benefit is being organized at the behest of Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins, who has found MAP’s services invaluable in his recent struggle with substance abuse. “Plain and simple: I’m a recovering addict,” says Hawkins. “Buddy, Carole and MAP have helped me, friends of mine, and so many people in the musical community. I have to do my part to help them. They are such amazing people, having started this whole thing on a shoestring and building it up to what it is now. This is the least I can do to repay them.”
Buddy Arnold’s 15 years in the drug and alcohol treatment field, lifetime as a professional saxophonist and his 31 years as a junkie, combined with Carole Fields’, a recovering alcoholic of many years herself, administrative expertise and networking skills, have served as the foundation upon which MAP has been built. For nearly a decade, MAP has provided members of the music community with access to treatment regardless of financial status, peer support networks, aftercare groups, and transitional living arrangements. MAP has also made considerable progress in educating music industry professionals to identify, intervene, and support the treatment and recovery process of their peers, as well as ongoing public preventive and educational campaigns aimed at young people and future musicians.
Tickets go on sale 10:00 a.m. PST today (Monday, January 21) via Ticketmaster and the House of Blues box office.
