Musician, businesses team up to benefit Nepal quake victims

MILLBURY - Local musician Brendan Kelley is headlining the entertainment at the Nepal Benefit Concert at the Cake Shop Café July 30.

Kelley, 23, is back home again after spending a year in Austin, Texas, and three in Nashville working on his music.

Those efforts paid off as two of Kelley’s songs, "Meant to Be" and "Pass Me By," made it onto Billboard’s Top 100 hit list, with "Meant to Be" peaking at number 71. A rough edited version of "Meant to Be" also earned Kelley the title of Nashville Singer/Songwriter of the year for 2013.

Locally, Kelley has performed with Ayla Brown, and also headlined for the Delta Generators.

While he typically plays with band members Rick O'Neal, Charlie O'Neal and Jeff Armstrong, he will be doing an acoustic set with Jeremy Carter that will feature many of his own songs as well as some covers.

The Nepal Benefit Concert is the brainchild of Lindsay Mason and Lauren Cadrin of French Knot Studio, a handmade accessories company that contracts with knitters and felters from Nepal and Peru.

Mason, who has been operating French Knot Studio for three years, said that her primary supplier in Katmandu lost nearly $50,000 of yarn in the 7.8-magnitude earthquake of April 25 and 7.3-magnitude earthquake on May 12. Mason has nearly 1,000 artisans who knit and felt for her, and over 10 percent have lost their homes as a result of the earthquakes and aftershocks.

“We have given money to the Red Cross and to Habitat for Humanity, but as a small business, we can only do so much,” Mason said.

French Knot Studio is partnering with Habitat for Humanity’s International office in Atlanta for the event; all proceeds from the event will be directed to its work in Nepal.

Cadrin, who went to high school with Kelley at Sutton High School, said that since Kelley is an up-and-coming local artist, inviting him to be a part of the fundraiser was a win-win for everyone.

Cake Shop Café, 22A West St., Millbury, has an outdoor patio with plenty of seating and will be featuring Nepalese-themed desserts for the evening.

Prior to Kelley’s performance, Krave Fitness will be offering a free yoga class at 6 p.m., followed by a class by Crossfit AC at 7 p.m.

In addition to raising funds through ticket sales, Mason and Cadrin are sponsoring a raffle of items from the different vendors in the Felter’s Mill complex. Tickets for the event are $15 and may be purchased in advance through EventBrite or at the door.