410: Willie Nelson starts Farm-Aid
Farm-Aid started as an idea at the Live Aid Concert when Bob Dylan said on stage, “Wouldn’t it be great if we did something for our own farmers right here in America?” Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp agreed that family farmers were in dire need of assistance and decided to plan a concert for America. The show was put together in six weeks and was held on September 22, 1985 in Champaign, Illinois before a crowd of 80,000 people. It raised over $7 million for America’s family farmers. Performers included Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, B.B. King, Loretta Lynn, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and many more. Today, Farm Aid has raised more than $30 million to promote a strong and resilient family farm system of agriculture. It works to increase awareness of the importance of family farms, and puts on an annual concert of country, blues and rock music with a variety of stars.