Bon Jovi to Israel: I’ll be there for you
Classic New Jersey rockers schedule October concert in Tel Aviv
New Jersey-born singer Jon Bon Jovi seems to agree that the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions is bad medicine: He has booked his band for an October 3 concert in Tel Aviv.
“We’ve toured around the world performing over 2,900 concerts in more than 50 countries and today I am excited to announce that for the first time ever we are performing in Tel Aviv. See you on October 3,” the band’s representative said.
It’s not clear whether Israelis, for whom “Living on a Prayer” is a way of life and not just a classic rock song, are dancing in the streets at the news. Tickets went on sale on Wednesday. The performance will be two days after the band has a gig in Abu Dhabi.
Promoter Marcel Avram told the Times of Israel that band frontman Jon Bon Jovi has always wanted to perform in Israel and doesn’t care about pressure to boycott it.
“Jon Bon Jovi couldn’t care less,” Avram said, according to the Times of Israel. “He is not the first or the last one to come to Israel … We are a proud country where a lot of people enjoy music; everyone wants to perform in Israel.”
“He has a lot of Jewish friends,” Avram said of Bon Jovi. “There are a lot of Jewish people in New Jersey and he wants to see Israel. He was never here before.”
Avram added that Bon Jovi’s Jewish keyboardist, David Rashbaum, speaks a little Yiddish and is excited to be headed to Israel.
The band announced in 2010 that it would put Israel on its list of stops during its 2011 world tour, but the promise never materialized.
Bon Jovi, who has been friendly with New Jersey’s Governor Chris Christie, also announced this week that he is hosting a private concert to raise money for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
comments