VANCOUVER, Canada (Canadian Press) -
Sarah McLachlan, like some of the other big stars in Canada's music pantheon, says the timing of a benefit concert planned to raise money for cancer research is particularly appropriate for her.
"My mother passed away just before Christmas last year of cancer and she fought a good fight, 18 months," said the star at a news conference Thursday to announce the gig.
"As an artist, it was such an easy thing for me to say yes to this, regardless of my personal history. So many people I know have been affected by cancer."
McLachlan will be playing the October concert with Bryan Adams, Chantal Kreviazuk, Jann Arden and the Barenaked Ladies.
She said she met people from all walks of life who have been affected by the deadly disease at the Vancouver cancer clinic where she accompanied her mother for her daily chemotherapy and radiation treatments.
"It's pretty well the hardest thing anybody ever goes through - watching somebody you love sort of fade away."
Giving back to the community is an incredible honour, she said.
McLachlan said she may perform some new songs at the concert but isn't sure if she will appear solo or bring along her band.
The charity concert is slated to raise $1 million for the building of the new B.C. Cancer Research Centre in Vancouver.
Tickets are priced between $79.50 and $129.50 and will go on sale August 17.
McLachlan was the first musician to come on board for the show when concert promoter Shane Bourbonnais asked her to participate earlier this year after his 31-year-old wife Michele died of cervical cancer.
The concert will be held Oct. 10, on the one-year anniversary of Michele Bourbonnais's death and fulfils her wish to help others, her husband said.
Arden, Kreviazuk, Barenaked Ladies' band member Kevin Hearn and Adams joined the news conference via teleconference.
"As many people probably know, I've been supporting breast cancer probably since the early '90s," said Adams, who has published a book of his black and white photography to benefit breast cancer research.
The best-selling Made In Canada, along with a benefit concert in 1998, has enabled him to raise about $1 million for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, he said.
A friend's battle with the disease prompted him to take up the cause.
All the musicians said they have been touched by cancer in some way - whether through the loss of friends or family members.
Hearn, a keyboard player with the Barenaked Ladies, was diagnosed with leukemia in 1999 and has been in remission for a year.
"I'm a cancer survivor and any research that's done benefits cancer victims and their families all over the world," said Hearn, who has rejoined his bandmates on tour since a bone marrow transplant.
Mary McNeil, president and CEO of the B.C. Cancer Foundation, said the money raised will go a long way to fund research in a disease that affects one in three Canadians.
British Columbia's existing cancer facilities are world-renowned and survival rates are 15 per cent higher in B.C. than in other provinces.
The $100 million research centre is set to open in 2004.
"It been a hard secret to keep and it's been getting more and more exciting," McNeil said of the concert plans.
Everything from hotel accommodation and transportation for the musicians and even the venue have been donated by local companies
