Ayrshire’s brightest stars will Stand Up to Cancer
A big- hearted musician hopes to make a real difference with a charity concert for a cause close to his heart.
Steven Montgomery, 24, will bring some of the finest young talent from across Scotland to Kilmarnock’s Bellfield Tavern to Stand Up to Cancer in March.
He said: “My mum passed away in December 2015 after a breif and aggressive battle with diffuse lymphona.
“Cancer Research UK is trialling new treatments at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow, which is where my mum was, and after doing some research into the statistics on cancer in the UK I realised that much more needs to be done to combat the disease.
“The charities responsible for research and development are largely, if not completely, funded by donations and fundraisers.”
The talented dummer will perform with his band Velvetmoon for the first time in two years with One Last Secret man Wes Scott joining them on bass, alongside Kilmarnock’s own Andy K, Mannequin Mannequin and Edinburgh- based funk group FaR.
Steven said: “I wanted the event to appeal to as many people as possible so I decided to vary up the styles from each of the bands.
“I’m hoping to raise as much money as possible. Every penny counts when it comes to the life- saving research into cancer.
“Realistically I’d aim for £ 500, which I think is achievable from ticket sales and a raffle on the night.”
As well as an impressive array of musical talent, the event will also be compered by one of the kings of Ayrshire music in Irvine Beat FM presenter Ronnie McGhie.
Ronnie has been responsible for giving some of Ayrshire’s brightest talents their first radio air play, and now he will lend his talents to the fundraising evening.
Steven hopes to promote more of the SU2C events if this debut show is a success, and continue to raise vital funds.
He said: “I’d like to turn this into an annual fundraising event.
“I think it’s a great cause that’s deserving of the effort and it’s been really great to see so much support so far.
“It’s been great to see how much support I’ve received from musicians across Ayrshire and I believe that coming together and working toward the same goal could have incredible results.
“Ayrshire has an incredible music scene filled with some amazingly talented musicians and it’s great to see them working together.”
Stand Up to Cancer Live will be hosted at The Bellfield Tavern in Kilmarnock on Friday, March 17, doors at 7pm.
Tickets cost £ 5 and are available from www. bellfield. bigcartel. com.