Music icon Janet Jackson is set to headline this year’s World AIDS Day concert. The five-time Grammy winner and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee’s full-length show — in support of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s (AHF) annual event benefiting HIV/AIDS awareness — will take place Dec. 1 at NRG Arena in Houston.
Also joining Jackson at the event as a speaker will be Emmy, Grammy and Golden Globe award-winning choreographer, director and producer Debbie Allen. In addition, AHF will present its lifetime achievement award to Emmy-winning actor and activist Blair Underwood.
Jackson’s upcoming performance follows the singer-songwriter’s most recent concert trek. The Together Again Tour borrowed its name from Jackson’s eighth No. 1 single. Released in 1997, “Together Again” marked her personal tribute to a friend she lost to AIDS and also to AIDS victims and their families worldwide. The tour went on to become the artist’s highest-grossing outing to date, earning $50.9 million according to Billboard Boxscore.
A staunch activist in the fight against HIV/AIDS over the last three decades, Underwood co-founded Artists for a New South Africa to direct attention to the catastrophic impact the disease has had on families and children across the continent. The actor also joined actress Ashley Judd as a spokesperson for YouthAIDS in 2003. Since then, Underwood has been working in partnership with AHF, particularly in Washington, D.C. According to the foundation, the district houses the most HIV cases per capita which is nearly three times the national rate.
“I’m so honored to be receiving this gracious award by AHF,” said Underwood in a statement. “We have had a long-standing partnership in the fight against HIV/AIDS, and there is still more work to be done.”
Previous AHF World AIDS Day concert performers include Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Hudson, Gladys Knight, Patti LaBelle and Diana Ross. Among advocates who have received the foundation’s lifetime achievement award are Harry Belafonte, Debbie Allen, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and, posthumously, Princess Diana.
Proceeds from the World AIDS Day concert will benefit HIV/AIDS awareness. Tickets will be available online through Ticketmaster beginning Monday, Oct. 16 (3 p.m. ET/noon PT).
