Matthew Perry Perry, who died at age 54 in October 2023 of an overdose while reportedly going through ketamine infusion therapy, was a champion of mental health causes.Jordan Strauss/The Canadian Press
Several Canadian music icons are set to perform at a benefit concert honouring late Friends actor and mental health advocate Matthew Perry in November in an effort to elevate conversations about mental health.
Organized by Perry’s sister Caitlin Morrison and Make Music Matter, the Live Loud LIVE event will come to Koerner Hall in Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music on Nov. 14.
Morrison said the concert is meant to be a “celebration” for music lovers and an “opportunity for people to let go of the weighty things they’ve been carrying.”
The event will be headlined by Hank Azaria, a Simpsons voice actor and occasional Friends character, who will front a Bruce Springsteen tribute band, backed by what Morrison calls “an orchestra of notable Canadian musicians.”
Morrison remembers a birthday celebration where Azaria brought together several friends to celebrate and sang a few Springsteen songs.
“(Azaria) embodies the guy, it’s crazy. It’s almost like watching him get ready for his Academy Award-winning performance as Springsteen in a movie,” Morrison said.
It will also see performances from Serena Ryder, City and Colour, Billy Talent and Royal Wood, as well as members of Sum 41 and Broken Social Scene. It will be hosted by former JoyDrop musician and SiriusXM Canada host Tara Slone and CBC’s Tom Power.
Perry, who died at age 54 in October 2023 of an overdose while reportedly going through ketamine infusion therapy, was a champion of mental health causes. He struggled with addiction for years, dating back to his time as Chandler Bing on Friends, where he became one of the biggest stars of his generation.
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In an interview promoting his 2022 book Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing on “Q with Tom Power,” Perry said he wanted to be remembered more as someone who wanted to help people recover from addiction than for his role on Friends.
“I really truly believe that there will come a time and it won’t be too far down the road when that is in fact the first thing that people think of when they hear his name,” Morrison said of her brother’s legacy.
Proceeds from ticket sales and a silent auction will be split between Matthew Perry House and Make Music Matter.
After his death, Perry’s friends and family founded Matthew Perry House, a community that offers long-term recovery care for those experiencing addiction, in his honour. The first recovery community in Ottawa is on track to open in 2027, Morrison says, with two other locations opening shortly afterwards.
The concert is happening just shortly after the second anniversary of Perry’s death, and while Morrison said recognizing that date is making her feel sad, she hopes the event can be a reminder of her older brother for herself and everyone who loved him.
“The truth is that knowing that this kind of concert that’s going to celebrate him is coming up is one of the few bright spots in that difficult thing for me right now, and I’m hoping that this can be the same for other people,” she said.
Tickets to the concert are available through the Royal Conservatory’s website.