RockCorps: volunteering’s cool makeover

Four hours of volunteering for a concert ticket.

Young people are accepting to help the Red Cross out to go and see Busta Rhymes, David Guetta and Seyfu on October 2 at the Zénith, in Paris.

Julien is 18 and lives in Santerny, Paris.  One of his friends has told him about a rather unusual project: to give four hours of your time to an association in exchange for a concert ticket. 

Without hesitating for a second, Julien goes to the first session of the “Orange RockCorps” on July 21.  The aim: a total renovation of the French Red Cross house in Val-de-Marne, which involves painting, gardening and cleaning.

Although Julian admits that most of the thirty 16-25 year olds working that day are there purely for the concert tickets, he also points out that volunteering is far from being a constraint. 

“A few friends of mine are here.  There is a good atmosphere, and I’d actually been wanting to work with the Red Cross, even without the motivation of a concert ticket.”

Cherry on the cake: Seyfu who will join Busta Rhymes and David Guetta  on the 2 October.

The Aulnay-sous-Bois rapper wanted to signal his support to the operation through his presence at the concert.

“Barriers need to be destroyed.  It’s not just because I am an artist that I shouldn’t be doing the same kind of work as them.”

The project seeks to help the young but also associations such as the Red Cross who will benefit until the end of September from volunteers’ enthusiasm.

The principal “give four hours, win a ticket” was put into action by the RockCorps enterprise which was founded in 2005 across the Atlantic.  It was originally associated to Boost Mobile, a telecommunication brand.  Between 2005 and 2008, RockCorps organised seven concerts in the United-States.

In Europe, the experience has now been put into practice twice: in the UK, with the collaboration of Orange.  Last year, RockCorps assembled 5000 volunteers for a concert in the Royal Albert Hall, London. 

According to Stephen Greene, co-founder of the organisation, “the power of music enables the organisation of a party which profits all.”

In view of the great success of the July 13 concert in Manchester organised by the group, Orange and RockCorps await the same kind of success in Paris.

“RockCorps has always wanted to organise concerts in France where music holds such an important place.”

RockCorps describes itself as “an international movement with more than 20 live events, 40,000 volunteers and an audience of millions who have heard the message that Volunteering is cool.

You can’t win a ticket; you can’t buy a ticket; you have to earn a ticket.

Which country next? 

 

France: volunteers to earn tickets until end of September:

www.orangerockcorps.fr

 

International:

www.rockcorps.com

 

Article partially translated from Le Monde.