WIRED magazine today announced that rock band Spoon will headline a concert to benefit Creative Commons on September 10, 2007 at the Henry Fonda Theater in Los Angeles. The concert is a kick-off event for WIRED NextFest, a unique world’s-fair-style event showcasing future technologies in design, entertainment, communication, healthcare, transportation, sustainable living, and more, at the Los Angeles Convention Center, September 13–16, 2007.

Spoon is an Austin, TX-based quartet with five full-length albums to its credit, and its heavily anticipated sixth album, entitled “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga” is slated for release on July 10. Spoon’s previous album, “Gimme Fiction,” received widespread acclaim and appeared on “Best of 2005” lists in Blender and Spin. In 2004, Spoon joined artists such as the Beastie Boys, David Byrne, My Morning Jacket, a pre-Gnarls-Barkley Danger Mouse (featuring Cee-Lo), and the Rapture in donating tracks to the Creative Commons-licensed WIRED CD: Rip. Sample. Mash. Share.

Proceeds from the concert will benefit Creative Commons, the non-profit organization devoted to expanding the range of creative work available for others to build upon and share legally. This is the third benefit concert WIRED has produced to benefit Creative Commons. Previous concerts featured David Byrne and Gilberto Gil; and Girl Talk, Diplo and Peeping Tom.

The concert will serve as a live reunion for Spoon and Keepon the robot, which achieved online celebrity status in April after the little robot became a YouTube sensation dancing to Spoon’s song, “I Turn My Camera On.” The video “Keepon Dancing to Spoon” is available on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3g-yrjh58ms and boasts over 1.2 million views and scores of online imitators. Following the concert, Keepon will be holding court at WIRED NextFest September 13-16.

Tickets go on sale Saturday, June 23, for the all-ages general admission show priced at $20. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster.com.

In addition to enjoying Spoon’s critically acclaimed music and supporting an important cause in Creative Commons, concertgoers will get a sneak peek at some of the futuristic exhibits to be showcased at WIRED NextFest. Attendees of the benefit concert will get a free ticket to WIRED NextFest for Friday, September 14.

To learn more and to purchase tickets for WIRED NextFest, please visit http://www.wirednextfest.com.

About WIRED

For nearly 15 years, WIRED has been the first word on how technology is changing the world around us. Each month, the magazine delivers a glimpse into the future of business, science, entertainment, education, culture, and politics. Under the leadership of Editor-in-Chief Chris Anderson, WIRED has been nominated for an unprecedented six consecutive National Magazine Awards for General Excellence, winning the industry’s prestigious top prize in 2007 and 2005. WIRED magazine and Wired.com reach nearly 6 million readers per month.

About Creative Commons

Creative Commons is a not-for-profit organization, founded in 2001, that promotes the creative re-use of intellectual and artistic works—whether owned or in the public domain. Creative Commons licences provide a flexible range of protections and freedoms for authors, artists, and educators that build upon the “all rights reserved” concept of traditional copyright to offer a voluntary “some rights reserved” approach. It is sustained by the generous support of various organizations including the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Omidyar Network, the Hewlett Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation as well as members of the public. For general information, visit https://creativecommons.org.

Contact

Alexandra Constantinople
WIRED Media
+1 415 276 5962
Alexandra_Constantinople@wired.com

Bill Danon
Bite Communications for WIRED Media
+1 310 295 2140
bill.danon@bitepr.com