Canadian rockers Billy Talent are partnering with EB Research Partnership to help fund a cure for Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a group of devastating and life-threatening genetic skin disorders that affect children from birth.
Founded in 2010 by Jill Vedder, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, and a group of dedicated parents, EB Research Partnership (EBRP) is the largest global non-profit entity funding research aimed at treating and ultimately curing EB.
In addition to donating a dollar from each ticket sold at their upcoming Budweiser Stage Show in Toronto (July 8th), Billy Talent will have several activations on site where fans can join the band in supporting this worthy cause.
Ben Kowalewicz, lead singer of Billy Talent says “I had never heard of EB until someone in my family was diagnosed a few years ago. The more I read about it the deeper I felt l wanted to help in whatever way possible. Then I stumbled upon the EB Research Partnership and saw what remarkable and cutting edge work they were doing, and I reached out to see if there was anything the band could do to help raise awareness and support their efforts to find a cure. Billy Talent is incredibly proud and honoured to align ourselves with such a trailblazing organization like the EBRP and this will be the first of many collaborations with them until that glorious day when we find the cure.”
Billy Talent have been long-time champions for many philanthropic efforts, partnering with their fans during their tours to support a variety of causes, including food insecurity War Child, Make Music Matter, MusiCounts, Kids Help Phone, and MS research.
In 2018 they launched the Billy Talent Charity Trust to give back to a variety of organizations with values that the group believes in.
“We are honored and grateful to partner with Billy Talent and have them as a key part of the team that will accelerate treatments and cures for EB. Our mission is to cure EB by 2030 by funding the most impactful and innovative science in the world, including research being done right here in Canada at SickKids and CHU Sainte-Justine. Our goal is to cure EB for everyone, forever. Raising awareness for EB and funds for life-saving research amongst incredible people, like the Billy Talent and their fans, is a critical part of this mission,” says Michael Hund, CEO of EB Research Partnership.
For more information on EB and the efforts to find a cure, please visit https://www.ebresearch.org/
Billy Talent are one of Canada’s most successful bands. They have sold nearly one million albums in Canada alone and nearly 3 million albums internationally and are approaching 2 billion global streams across their catalogue. They have won 7 Juno Awards and have been nominated 23 times, including three nods for Afraid of Heights (Group of the Year, Rock Album of the Year, and Ian D’Sa for Producer of the Year).
Their most recent studio album Crisis of Faith debuted at #1 in Germany and had three singles hit the #1 spot at Canadian Rock Radio which combined to spend a total of 21 weeks atop the Canadian Rock radio chart.
Crisis of Faith debuted at #8 on the Billboard Canadian Albums Chart, joining just four other rock artists who have reached the Top 10 within the past 12 months (Iron Maiden, The Tragically Hip, Kings of Leon and Foo Fighters).
In 2018 the group was honoured with the Legends of Live Special Achievement Award, presented by Canadian Music Week.
Billy Talent are set to perform at the upcoming Rock The Park music festival in London, Ontario, along with the Louder Than Life music festival this September in Louisville, Kentucky.
Founded in 2010 by a group of dedicated parents and Jill and Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, EB Research Partnership (EBRP) is the largest global nonprofit funding research to discover treatments and cures for Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a devastating and life-threatening genetic skin disorder that affects children from birth.
Since its inception EBRP has been able to raise over $50M, fund 120+ EB projects globally and fund 19+ clinical trials – including one FDA approved treatment in May 2023.
EBRP ensures sustainable funding for future EB research through a Venture Philanthropy model.
Instead of simply making grants, EBRP searches the globe for the most promising research projects.
These projects are vetted through EBRP’s world-class Scientific Advisory Board.
In exchange for funding projects, EBRP takes a financial interest in the work of the university or business.
When those projects succeed, returns are reinvested back into other promising EB research projects.
This model not only promises to change the lives of families fighting this disease, but also to change the way rare disease treatments are found.