Rock legend auctions piano to help New Year’s earthquake survivors with heartfelt message
Image via www.yoshiki.net
©YOSHIKI
A day of joy turned to misery when a 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck the Noto Peninsula on Japan’s west coast on New Year’s Day. The earthquake and subsequent tsunami destroyed many homes and left 232 people dead according to NHK as of Monday. Relief efforts were quickly launched and thousands of people donated to help survivors. Among the participants was legendary Japanese rock artist YOSHIKI.
YOSHIKI announced on January 9 that he will auction off his crystal Kawai CR-40N piano for charity to help relief efforts after the Noto Peninsula earthquake. This happened during the unveiling ceremony of his handprints and footprints at the TLC Chinese Theater in Hollywood. In his speech at the ceremony, YOSHIKI said: “This year, on January 1, there was another sad news, a major earthquake occurred in Japan. It hit me very hard. I want to share this moment with those who are mourning lost loved ones. If possible, I would like to take the opportunity of this special event to give something back, as I have done before.” A short video of the ceremony was posted on YOSHIKI’s official YouTube account.
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The auction begins on January 12 at 12:01 a.m. Japan time and ends on January 16 at 11:59 p.m. Japan time. In his first Instagram post, YOSHIKI said 100% of the proceeds will go to disaster victims. At the end of the auction, the piano sold for 40 million yen (about 270,000 USD). YOSHIKI also personally donated an additional 10 million yen (about 68,000 USD) to relief efforts for a total of 50 million yen (about 350,000 USD). In his next Instagram post, YOSHIKI said: “I’m a little sad to say goodbye to my Crystal Piano, which is like family to me. But I think some people will be saved by this.”
YOSHIKI also has a non-profit organization, YOSHIKI Foundation America, which also accepts donations for earthquake relief. Donations through his organization will go to the Japanese Red Cross. So, although we cannot auction YOSHIKI’s crystal piano, we can donate to the Japanese Red Cross.
Source: website, Instagram account (Link 2), YouTube account, Yoshiki Foundation America, NHK
