The Fire Aid Benefit Concert In LA Was Incredible

FireAid 2025 was a night of legendary music, resilience, and love for L.A.

Last night saw two massive arenas, The Kia Forum and the gleaming new Intuit Dome, lit up with a back-and-forth barrage of world-class music, all in support of victims of this month's Los Angeles wildfires which devastated the city, and the brave folks who risked their lives to help fight the fires. You could practically feel the gratitude through the television screen. RA did a great job setting the scene in his blog.

The big headlines earlier in the day mentioned that by the time the show started, over $60 million had already been raised, with U2 dropping a cool $1 million of their own and Steve Ballmers' family matching it dollar-for-dollar. But right from the first chord, it was clear that this was more than a flashy fundraiser. It was a reminder of the unmatched power of music to unify, to heal, and to help a community still reeling from unimaginable loss.

The show opened at the Kia Forum at 9 p.m. central with a toned-down, heartfelt set by Green Day, who performed “Last Night on Earth” as images of wildfire destruction played behind them. 

Billie Eilish joined the band onstage, unannounced, to trade verses with Billie Joe Armstrong, turning the moment into a

Alanis Morissette continued the show by performing her songs, “Hand in My Pocket” and “Thank U”. She sounded damn good.

Anderson .Paak took things to another level, appearing with the legendary Sheila E. before welcoming Dr. Dre to the stage for an electric rendition of “California Love.”

At the Intuit Dome, Joni Mitchell made a triumphant appearance with “Both Sides Now.” For what was a return performance, years after a life-altering brain aneurysm, she sounded really, really good. And her song might be the saddest song of all time. 

Stephen Stills came out and sang his hit “For What It’s Worth,” alongside Mike Campbell from Tom Petty's band The Heartbreakers.

But then the crowd went wild when Stills’ former bandmate Graham Nash took the stage to perform “Teach Your Children” alongside the band Dawes.

Then over at The Intuit Dome Rod Stuart, who just turned 80, hit the stage.

Pink added to the night’s rock-and-roll tributes at the Forum, where she launched into a rousing Led Zeppelin cover of “Babe, I’m Gonna Leave You.”

Pink's voice is fucking insane. She crushed. 

They had the stages set up like lazy susans so that while one band was performing, they could be striking and then setting up for the next band to take the stage. Then rotate the stage and rinse and repeat.

I know everybody despises Live Nation but the fact that they were able to coordinate this event in such a short amount of time, and execute it as well as they did, juggling two giant stadiums at once is really impressive. 

After Pink, the Black Crowes similarly turned to Led Zeppelin with “Going to California,” and were joined by fuckin Slash.

This might have been my favorite performance of the night. Hand up, I had no idea Chris Robinson's voice was this good. Plus anything with Slash involved instantly makes it 200 times better. 

Then our boy John Mayer performed an acoustic set that ended with a cover of Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin’,” a song he said represented "the dream of moving to California for so many musicians." 

Next up was legendary group Earth, Wind, and Fire- 

Stevie Nicks then came out. She was one of the more touching moments of the show. She dedicated “Landslide” to the firefighters who saved her historic Palisades home and brought the place to tears. 

Anaheim locals No Doubt reunited, and played next, and the played some of their signature hits, opening with “Just a Girl”. 

Then we got a nice dose of my girl Tate McRae.

(Tate McRae intermission)

She was followed by Jelly Roll who brought out Travis Barker to accompany him on drums. 

The Red Hot Chili Peppers also played a series of California-themed tracks, including “Dani California,” “Californication,” and “Under the Bridge.”

Olivia Rodrigo came out next and goodness gracious is she talented. This girl can sing man. 

After that we got Sting. 

Followed by Stevie Wonder, Sting, and Flea who performed Stevie's "Superstition".

Billie Eilish then came back out and performed acoustically for a couple songs. 

And then Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and Pat Smear, the surviving members of Nirvana, took the stage with special guests St. Vincent, Kim Gordon, and Joan Jett, bringing the night to an unforgettable high. They performed classic Nirvana tracks, 

ending with Grohl’s daughter Violet lending her vocals to “All Apologies.”

Lady Gaga concluded the concert at nearly the six-hour mark with a set that blended hits from A Star Is Born and a newly written original song.

She concluded by praising the city’s resilience and underscored how crucial the evening’s donations were for those who had been displaced or lost their homes entirely.

That put a bow on a night that was for a good cause, but that had more star power involved than anything I can remember in recent memory.

The Grammy's are this Sunday, and they're going to have a really difficult time measuring up to this.