Ed Kowalczyk partners with World Vision Options

[Gertjan]

ED KOWALCZYK TEAMS WITH WORLD VISION

FOR UPCOMING U.S. TOUR

FIRST SINGLE FROM SOLO ALBUM ON THE CLIMB AT ROCK RADIO

Ed Kowalczyk, lead singer of the multi-platinum band Live, will hit the road this fall in support of his debut solo album, Alive. The tour will make stops in Philadelphia, Chicago and New York, along with several more major markets. Ed and his new band, including Ramy Antoun on drums, James Gabbie on lead guitar, Chris Heerlein on bass, and brother Adam Kowalczyk on rhythm guitar, will perform favorites from Live’s catalog (“I Alone,” “Lightning Crashes”) along with tracks from the new album.

For this tour, Ed will team with World Vision, a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families and their children worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. World Vision will have a space in the lobby of each venue educating and encouraging concertgoers to get involved, make a donation and learn about sponsoring a child. Ed personally sponsors many children through World Vision and hopes to bring awareness to the organization.

"In the nightly bedtime routine at the Kowalczyk house, I am in charge of getting two glasses of water for my daughters' night stands. One evening last year, as I handed my 8-year-old her glass, it hit me like a freight train; this clean water is a blessing that thousands of fathers, just like me in this world, do not have. I don't have to worry that the water might make my children, the loves of my life, sick with a possibly fatal illness. I simply take it for granted. I decided then and there to make a difference. It is with great pleasure and profound gratitude that I announce my partnership with World Vision. Let's all work together to give parents in need that simple joy of putting a glass of safe and clean water on the nightstands of their little ones."

Additionally, “Grace,” the first single from Alive, marks a homecoming for Ed at Rock radio. The track is rapidly climbing its way up the Alternative and Rock Radio charts after just 7 weeks with generous airplay coming from great markets such as Syracuse, Rochester and Charlotte with its largest market add so far from WBOS in Boston just this week. Robyn Lane at WRAT in Point Pleasant, NJ said “The only thing better than hearing “Grace” on the radio is hearing Ed and his band do it live…Simply beautiful.”

Ed Kowalczyk built an impressive résumé with LIVE that includes eight full-length albums, total CD sales exceeding 20 million, a huge international fan base and extensive touring all over the world. LIVE has been one of the most successful and enduring alternative rock bands of the 1990s and 2000s.

[OutToDry]

Nice of the gift to the world org but this post is totally Tebowesque. He is now Peter Hewson's preacher.

Ed Kowalczyk
‎(Ed K.) I love you all. My company will be writing a check for 5,500$ to World Vision that represents the total profit, so far, from the Grace CD's that you have purchased on my website and on the road. This 5,500$ has the angels of Heaven singing, and this I know for sure. Our Father Who Art In Heaven told me so, and He spoke it to my heart. :-) God Bless You and Thank you!

[FishOutaWater]

Ed Kowalczyk
‎(Ed K.) I love you all. My company will be writing a check for 5,500$ to World Vision that represents the total profit, so far, from the Grace CD's that you have purchased on my website and on the road. This 5,500$ has the angels of Heaven singing, and this I know for sure. Our Father Who Art In Heaven told me so, and He spoke it to my heart. :-) God Bless You and Thank you!

Ed actually wrote that? He is writing that God spoke to him and told him stuff? I realize it is a figure of speach. He is trying to be quirky, cool and Christian. But this is the kind of thing that I think makes him sound bat shit. He really is that a-hole on the cover of TC that he railed against when he was younger and wiser.

And what was it that Jesus said about giving to charity? Matthew 6:1-6:

"Beware of doing your charitable giving before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synogogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Most certainly, I tell you, they have received their rward. But you, when you pray, enter your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you."

Maybe Ed hasn't read that far in the bible yet. I know that he is still new to this whole Christianity thing since his reintroduction to his childhood religion.

This post has been edited by FishOutaWater: Jan 20 2012, 3:12 pm

[dangum]

And what was it that Jesus said about giving to charity? Matthew 6:1-6:

"Beware of doing your charitable giving before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. "

Oh come on, that's a bit harsh don't you think? There's no evidence that Ed is making these donations public just so he can be 'seen'.

When Ed started selling the Grace CDs, he said that all of the money would go to World Vision. I think that was the main reason why many fans purchased this CD, because for $10 + postage it certainly wasn't value for money. Now Ed is just following up on that promise and letting people who donated know how much was raised. There's nothing wrong with that.

[FishOutaWater]

Oh come on, that's a bit harsh don't you think? There's no evidence that Ed is making these donations public just so he can be 'seen'.

When Ed started selling the Grace CDs, he said that all of the money would go to World Vision. I think that was the main reason why many fans purchased this CD, because for $10 + postage it certainly wasn't value for money. Now Ed is just following up on that promise and letting people who donated know how much was raised. There's nothing wrong with that.

Your criticism is fair and before I made the post, I thought long and hard about how Ed is technically acknowledging the donations of others and that is theoretically different. But I guess I see everything Ed does now through a jaded and cynical lens. He could have written a check for $5,000. He could have served on a board or encouraged his friends to donate. But I think that his promotion of the charitable donations in connection with merchandise and sales and his interviews on Christian media outlets showcasing his faith and all of the Facebook and Twitter posts are a part of his branding and not purely motivated by an altruistic desire to give. There is an element of "Hey, look how much I got my fans to give! I'm doing good over here!" How much media space has Ed taken up to get $5,000 to this charity, when he could have quietly written them a check for that amount. There is an element of "Hey look at me! I'm the loving Christian and I am identified with goodness and good works." I think that CCP have handled charitable giving in a more altruistic way.

But I can fully acknowledge that my argument is tenuous at best. It mostly influenced by my personal feelings and internal instinct for where Ed is coming from.

This post has been edited by FishOutaWater: Jan 21 2012, 8:20 am

[dancing queen]

Your criticism is fair and before I made the post, I thought long and hard about how Ed is technically acknowledging the donations of others and that is theoretically different. But I guess I see everything Ed does now through a jaded and cynical lens. He could have written a check for $5,000. He could have served on a board or encouraged his friends to donate. But I think that his promotion of the charitable donations in connection with merchandise and sales and his interviews on Christian media outlets showcasing his faith and all of the Facebook and Twitter posts are a part of his branding and not purely motivated by an altruistic desire to give. There is an element of "Hey, look how much I got my fans to give! I'm doing good over here!" How much media space has Ed taken up to get $5,000 to this charity, when he could have quietly written them a check for that amount. There is an element of "Hey look at me! I'm the loving Christian and I am identified with goodness and good works." I think that CCP have handled charitable giving in a more altruistic way.

But I can fully acknowledge that my argument is tenuous at best. It mostly influenced by my personal feelings and internal instinct for where Ed is coming from.

possibly, in following the exact idea you quoted from Matthew, Ed wrote a matching check for $5000, or maybe $10K, or who knows how much, and he just didn't mention it because he wanted to acknowledge the fans who, as Dan said, didn't really get a great deal by buying the cd, so were mostly just trying to help the charity.
I have no problem with Ed's giving props to the fans who bought cd's, and I appreciate that he didn't mention his own donation, if he made one - he also didn't bother to highlight the fact that he apparently made no profit from this cd.
I think the lenses through which you see Ed are just a little too dark... I'm not saying he's the greatest guy on earth, I've read the lawsuit and I've been to his shows and I'm fully aware of all the craziness going on, but regarding the work he's helped to do with World Vision, I find very little, if any, fault with his behavior.
World Vision is a great organization and I'm really glad so many of his fans have signed up to help.

[dangum]

Ed will again be supporting World Vision on his Fall 2012 tour. Ed also confirmed that he will be coming to Australia in 2013 with a new album.

(Ed K.) I am BEYOND excited to announce that I will be partnering once again with World Vision for my "I Alone Acoustic Tour" this fall in the US and beyond! To date we've connected over 200 children with new sponsors at my shows and online - let's double it, triple it, quadruple it! I have no doubt we will! www.facebook.com/worldvision

https://www.facebook.com/edkowalczyk/posts/118962201582359