A Stella Lineup
Stella McCartney has corralled her pals in the music industry for a debut digital festival, Stellafest, aimed at raising money to help end violence against women. The festival, which began Thursday and runs until Sunday, will be accompanied by a charity auction in aid of the National Network to End Domestic Violence.
“Artists from our community have come together to create a festival that is truly global — using technology and social media to bring the mosh pit onto your mobile,” McCartney said. “While I was sad not to see Dad and all the other great performers at Glastonbury this year, we have put together an incredible lineup and are raising our voices to end violence against women, a cause more urgent now than ever.”
The Glastonbury music festival was among myriad summer events to be canceled in the U.K. due to COVID-19. Paul McCartney, Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift and Diana Ross were all set to perform at the annual event, which usually takes place at the end of June.
Among the acts set to perform at Stellafest are Taylor Hawkins, Brian Wilson, Kelis, Zuri Marley and Mademoiselle Yulia. Artists will also be offering exclusive experiences as part of the accompanying charity auction, which will be hosted by Princess. com and produced in partnership with Mastercard.
Prizes include a virtual studio visit with McCartney, plus a signed, one-off garment; a cooking class with Kelis, and a signed copy of Alicia Keys’ book “More Myself,“and a 10-minute chat with the musician. The auction is taking place at priceless.com/stellafest.
Deborah J. Vagins, president and chief executive officer of NNEDV, called the festival, a “oneof-a-kind” digital event to help raise much-needed funds to help domestic violence advocates and survivors.
“More than one in three women around the world experience sexual or physical violence in their lifetime, and this violence disproportionately harms Indigenous women, Black women, and other women of color. Incidents of domestic violence have only increased during the lockdowns necessitated by COVID-19. We are so grateful for Stella McCartney’s innovation and dedication to address this urgent crisis,” she said. — SAMANTHA CONTI will be serving up online and offline programming. The program will include three interactive half-day activities each week. Video tutorials and instructions will be provided to complete the activities. Participants will be able to put those skills to the test starting July 20, when The North Face Summer Base Camp gets under way.
Climber, Academy Awardwinning filmmaker and father of two Jimmy Chin will be among the brand’s sponsored talent who will be offering some tips. He will give pointers about adventure photography. Some movie fans may recognize Chin for leading the team that filmed Alex Honnold on the first rope-free ascent of the 3,000-foot El Capitan in Yosemite National Park in 2017. That effort resulted in the featurelength documentary “Free Solo.”
Climber Nina Williams will teach campers about geometric designs, whereas her fellow climber Ashima Shiraishi will give the lowdown about snacks to pack. More daunting for some will be climber Manoah Ainuu’s insights about survival skills and ski mountaineer Hilaree Nelson’s recollections about climbing Mount Everest and demo about building and packing for at-home base camps.
The takeaway for online campers is to get outside for guided off-line experiences. Children and their parents will be encouraged to explore safely after learning from The North Face’s athlete camp counselors — even after their two-week digital adventure ends. — R.F.