The star-studded Concert for Carolina event raised a reported $24.5 million for Hurricane Helene victims
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(1031x386:1033x388):format(webp)/keith-urban-nicole-kidman-concert-for-carolinas-tout-102724-15a95a718fcf4d8bb7cc9ef6920330f6.jpg)
Keith Urban celebrated his birthday by giving back — and Nicole Kidman wasn’t going to let his charitable efforts go unrecognized!
The country star, who turned 57 on Saturday, Oct. 26, spent the night helping raise money for Hurricane Helene relief at the Concert for Carolina benefit show, where he performed a handful of songs at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium alongside a star-studded lineup of his musical peers.
The event raised an impressive $24.5 million, per the Charlotte Observer, and it featured headliners Luke Combs and Eric Church, and appearances from Urban, Sheryl Crow, James Taylor and more.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(1001x299:1003x301):format(webp)/keith-urban-nicole-kidman-concert-for-carolinas2-102724-9d575779e67d449caac4ba2b3f3532a5.jpg)
At one point in the night, Kidman, 57, joined her husband of 18 years onstage while helping him introduce Church, but not before telling the crowd that the big night landed on Urban’s birthday. The moment was captured by fans on X (formerly Twitter).
“[We’re] here with all of you tonight because of Eric giving Keith a call,” Kidman said. “I do want to say it’s his birthday tonight … And he wanted to be here with you. So here we go. Eric Church called him and here we are.”
Kidman and Urban then shared an onstage kiss, before greeting Church, who led the crowd in a “Happy Birthday to You” sing-along for his friend. The duo embraced in a high-five after the sweet moment.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(665x0:667x2):format(webp)/keith-urban-nicole-kidman-concert-for-carolinas-102724-54f9c3b8d7c9492e83e253a8c52756ea.jpg)
As for the show’s setlist, Urban played hits “Blue Ain’t Your Color” and “Wasted Time,” before duetting with Church on “Raise ‘Em Up,” per Setlist.fm.
Church played some of his own classics and also incorporated covers of tracks from The Temptations, Billy Joel, Otis Redding and more. He also teamed up with friend Crow on her song “Picture,” as Combs brought out a guest in Bailey Zimmerman for “Must’ve Never Met You.”
Per The Observer, 82,193 fans scooped tickets to the stadium event, which announced its $24.5 million donation at the end of the show.
“I wanted to have a good time tonight. I knew I wanted you all to have a good time tonight. But I knew also that I couldn’t ignore the gravity of the situation that we’re all in,” Combs said, per Fox News, which also reports that he told the crowd it took him, Church and others 28 days to organize the show.
“I haven’t been up that mountain yet myself. I have so many friends and family who are here tonight who live every day of their lives up that hill,” he continued. “And the things that I’ve seen, the things that I have heard are beyond words. And I think that there are a lot of you in this crowd who know that tonight.”
According to the outlet, Church and Combs will be assisting with relief efforts by splitting the proceeds and donating to organizations of their choosing. Per the Watauga Democrat, those organizations will include Church’s Chief Cares, as well as the MANNA FoodBank, Second Harvest Food Bank NWNC, Samaritan’s Purse and Eblen Charities.