Presented by Yoakam, alongside Billy Bob Thornton and film and TV producer/director McG, the evening will feature a full performance by Dwight Yoakam and his band, with special guest appearances by Charley Crockett, Marcus King, Lukas Nelson, and additional artists to be announced. McG will emcee the event.
The roots of Rockin’ for the Kids trace back to a deeply personal experience for Yoakam and his wife Emily. A few years ago at the height of covid, when their son was still an infant, the new parents found themselves at Children’s Hospital with Dr. Mark Krieger, SVP and Surgeon-in-Chief at CHLA, for what gratefully turned out to be nothing of any further concern.
Coincidentally, in the same time frame, Yoakam had just participated in a live-stream benefit for the Ronald McDonald House located across the street from CHLA. Dr. Krieger was aware of the connection and he thanked Yoakam for giving his support.
While waiting in those corridors of CHLA, Dwight and Emily witnessed hundreds of children moving through various stages of recovery and treatment, an experience that left a lasting impression. In their subsequent discussions with Dr. Krieger, Emily mentioned her profound experience working as a volunteer at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital in Nashville some years earlier. She posed the simple question: how could they give back to the hospital that cares for so many children and their families every day?
That conversation planted the seed for what would now become an ongoing philanthropic effort to help raise funds and awareness to CHLA’s work by bringing artists together to make a tangible impact.
Then in September 2024, when Yoakam was asked to perform a charity concert at the Lido Theatre in Newport Beach, owned by McG, Dwight suggested that CHLA and Children’s Hospital Orange County be the beneficiaries of the night’s fundraising. At that event, Yoakam and Dr. Krieger reconnected and discussed creating a yearly benefit during GRAMMY week and Rockin’ for the Kids was born.
“When you walk the halls of a children’s hospital, it changes you. It puts all of life in a very graphic perspective,” said Dwight Yoakam. “As Emily and I were there with our own child, we saw so many families facing battles no one hopes to ever have to endure. And while we were fortunate to not face those challenges, that experience never left us. Rockin’ for the Kids is our way of saying thank you to Dr. Krieger and the entire staff at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, on behalf of every family who puts their trust in them every single day.”
“On behalf of everyone at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, we are thrilled to be partnering with Mr. Yoakam and his wife on what is sure to be a truly special evening,” says Mark D. Krieger, MD, the hospital’s Surgeon-in-Chief and the Billy and Audrey L. Wilder Chair in Neurosurgery. “We are grateful to Dwight and Emily for their passion and vision in bringing this night to life.”
Additional participating artists will be announced soon.
Additional participating artists will be announced soon.
GA tickets are available for $285.40 via dwightyoakam.com and axs.com.
A limited number of sponsor and VIP tickets are available by contacting Matt Semler at msemler@chla.usc.edu.
