Race to Erase Raises $1.5 Million for MS Research With the Help of Natasha Bedingfield, A Great Big World and Caroline Rhea
13.05.2024 - 06:41
/ variety.com
Nicholas White Hollywood’s support for Race to Erase MS kept rolling into its 31st year Friday at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles, helping the Nancy Davis-led charity raise $1.5 million to multiple sclerosis research. The night’s headlining musical act, Natasha Bedingfield, played a medley of hers and others’ songs, including her 2000s-era hit “Unwritten,” which was recently given a new life in “Anyone but You,” and Bill Withers’ “Lean on Me,” which she sang alongside Davis and friends. Bedingfield was introduced by Casey Affleck.
“This is a cause worth showing up for,” Bedingfield told Variety. “There are a lot of amazing [medical] developments so far. Music is the thing that brings hope, to help inspire people to keep being creative.
The solutions are always created – they’re always a little bit out of the box.” Grammy-winning duo A Great Big World performed three songs, including “This Is the New Year.” Before playing, singer Chad King told the crowd that he was diagnosed with MS in 2007 but tried to “ignore” symptoms to himself, friends, and family. King said he has experienced physical differences in recent years, including walking and, most recently, using his voice. “This is going to be one of the first times that me and Ian [Axel] have performed together in a very long time,” King, who walks with a cane, said.
“It’s an honor to be here with you all and with Nancy raising such awareness.” The Davis family, including 93-year-old matriarch Barbara Davis, has been a charitable force in L.A. for decades. Barbara founded the Children’s Diabetes Foundation in 1977 and spearheaded the Carousel of Hope annual event, which has drawn Sidney Poitier, Oprah Winfrey, Jennifer Lopez, Shirley McClaine, and Robert
.