Chili Peppers Plan Ellis Island Soiree

CHILI PEPPERS PLAN ELLIS ISLAND SOIREE:

The Red Hot Chili Peppers will perform a concert Tuesday (July 9) on historic Ellis Island in New York Harbor. The show will celebrate the release that day of the band’s latest Warner Bros. album, “By the Way,” as well as the revitalization of lower Manhattan following last year’s terrorist attacks on the U.S.

“The Red Hot Chili Peppers expressed their interest in helping New Yorkers recover from the devastating events of 9/11,” Parks Superintendent Diane H. Dayson said in a statement. “Ellis Island symbolizes determination that is so important to the resurgence of downtown New York. We believe having the performance at this special place saved by the American people and cared for by the National Park Service will help highlight continued efforts to revitalize downtown.”

Tickets to the event are being distributed through a contest sponsored by local radio station WXRK (K-Rock), although 450 tickets are available to area businesses and the Twin Towers Fund for family members of Sept. 11 victims. In addition, the Circle Line ferry company, which has donated its services to transport attendees to the show, will sell 2,000 additional tickets to view the concert from the harbor. The $25 tickets are available today (July 3) on a first-come, first-served basis at Castle Clinton in New York’s Battery Park.

The Ellis Island Immigration Station was the entry point to the United States for more than 12 million immigrants from 1892 to 1954. Today the National Park Service manages Ellis Island as part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument.

“By the Way” is the follow-up to 1999’s “Californication,” which debuted at No. 3 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 4.9 million copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. The new album’s title track has already found a home on U.S. radio stations, and is No. 1 on Billboard’s Modern Rock Tracks chart and No. 3 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks tally.

Barry A. Jeckell courtesy of Billboard