The Brooklyn Bowl will turn pink this week as legendary jam band moe. takes the stage for a two-night run Oct. 9-10 in support of Rock the Pink, an industrywide campaign spearheaded by the American Cancer Society to “help end breast cancer as we know it.” Both shows are 21 and older, with doors opening at 6 p.m. and music starting at 8 p.m.
Celebrated for their “tireless work ethic, DIY resourcefulness, infectious songwriting, and highly engaged,” the band’s fall tour marks 35 years together. Their collection features music from albums including “Fatboy,” “What Happened to the La Las,” “Headseed” and their latest release, “Circle of Giants.”
The two-night stint at Brooklyn Bowl supports Rock the Pink during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Now in its third year, the initiative is led by Melanie Francis, associate director of development at the American Cancer Society.
“The thing we tell people when you fundraise is find the thing that you like to do and turn it into a fundraiser,” she told Brooklyn Paper. “It’s like putting the fun in fundraising, and music is my passion.”
Francis said she wanted to engage a new audience in the fight against breast cancer through the music world.
“The jam band world has been historically male-dominated,” she said. “So, the American Cancer Society started a campaign called Men Wear Pink about 10 years ago. The idea behind that is each community has these campaigns where guys are the proponents for breast cancer awareness and encourage their wives and sisters to get screened.”
“That was the background for the idea of the [Rock the Pink] campaign,” she added. “Let’s get musicians, venues and everyone that’s involved in the music scene to rally around this in October by doing their part, showing the community that we’ve got your back.”
Francis said Rock the Pink started with moe. — who her husband plays for — and quickly grew through connections in the jam-band scene. With help from Brooklyn Bowl owner Pete Shapiro, the band secured the venue and raised funds.
The campaign now includes creative ways to raise money and awareness. Francis said people have donated Soldier Straps and guitars, while the band wears pink on stage. “They even get pink instruments, and then they’ll auction them off,” she said.
She emphasized how deeply the effort resonates with fans.
“It builds more of that community bond between the fan and the band,” she said. “One in eight women will get diagnosed with breast cancer in their lives, and one in three people will be diagnosed with cancer. It affects everyone.”
She said she hopes both women and men will leave the event motivated to get screened, noting that men have been diagnosed with breast cancer more frequently in recent years.
Ultimately, Francis said she hopes concertgoers feel their participation makes a difference.
“I want people to feel like they’re making an impact. Their purchase, their drink and the shirt that they buy all goes toward helping raise funds. I want them to feel good that they did good,” she said.
Tickets for moe.’s Rock the Pink shows at Brooklyn Bowl are on sale now.
