There is no other voice like Philip Bailey’s. Whether you know it from Earth, Wind & Fire classics like “Fantasy” or “Reasons,” or the 1984 pop gem “Easy Lover,” Bailey’s soulful tone and four-octave range make for some of the most memorable vocal performances across any genre.
And if you’ve heard him sing live, perhaps at EWF’s long-running concert residency at Venetian, you know there’s nothing better. The iconic soul and funk group is back on the Strip stage this month, and Bailey is taking advantage of the exposure to shine a light on his Music Is Unity Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports young people across the country who are aging out of the foster care system. A special giveaway fundraiser allows donors of $50 or more to be entered to win two tickets to the show, a two-night stay at Venetian and a meet-and-greet with the group.
For more information about the organization and how you can get involved, visit musicisunity.org.
Can you tell us a little more about the Music Is Unity Foundation? Since 2007, Music Is Unity has provided grants to community-based organizations and agencies offering support services to more than 22,000 youth who are emancipated from the U.S. foster care system each year. And I hope people don’t think I’m just throwing out numbers, because if you really think about that, each year 22,000 youth—because their situation is no longer being funded by the government—are given their stuff, many of them put out with their stuff in paper bags, not even the dignity of having a suitcase, and a lot of them find themselves in crazy situations. I’ve had some of them over to my house to share their stories, and there’s not a dry eye in the place. My children have heard these stories. That’s what we’re supporting, and trying to make people aware of their plight.
How did you first connect to this cause? I’m a father of seven and a grandfather of seven, and I can’t imagine any of my folks trying to navigate through this cold, cruel world without having anybody to turn to. The foster needs are underserved and underpublicized, because you can’t visibly see when someone has no one to turn to. They have such deep needs that they can’t even express themselves. It takes a village and it takes high profile people who care enough to help make their situations viable.
It must feel great to be able to team up with the Venetian on this fundraising partnership while Earth, Wind & Fire is performing in Las Vegas again. It’s been great. It’s been a very successful residency there, this is our fourth year there, and we get to call the Venetian home for a few weeks every year. We added on so it’s like three and a half weeks this year. But it’s a lot of fun and always successful, and we’re looking forward to those winners who will get the meet-and-greet so we can have some extra fun this year.
EWF just finished touring with Lionel Richie. What was it like to shake up your normal touring schedule? It was an enormous success. We went out for two months and played arenas, and it was 98% sold out, a fantastic tour. And we’re going to add some dates next spring. It was a great time. Both acts being in the business as long as we have, we were very appreciative to be touring on that level and have that level of success after so many years. Even when talking with Lionel, I don’t think we ever could have imagined 50 years ago that we’d still be in the game and doing it at such a high level. It’s something you can’t take for granted.
Do you see the group continuing to tour in the coming years, or is there a possibility of getting off the road and spending even more time with a Vegas residency? I think we’re doing [Vegas] enough. We tour smart, and I still enjoy touring the world. Next year we’ll get to go to Asia and Europe. We’ve gone around the globe so many times, it’s kind of like our neighborhood. You miss going certain places when you haven’t been in a while. I look forward to getting back to Italy and to Japan. But we definitely want to thank all the fans who have embraced the fire and supported us for as long as you have at the residency or at a concert.
EARTH, WIND & FIRE October 20-22, 25, 27-28 & November 1, 3-4, 8:30 p.m., $54-$275. Venetian Theatre, ticketmaster.com.
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