Pharmapalooza 9
On Thursday, February 9, PHARMAPALOOZA – the annual healthcare agency battle of the bands event to benefit The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM) – hit the stage at B.B. King Blues Club and Grill in Times Square and brought down the house!
The fundraiser, created and hosted by CDM, donates every dollar received to CHAM’s Creative Arts Therapy Program, which blends state‑of‑the‑art medical care with creative activities and outlets and a nurturing environment designed for the unique physical, psychological, and emotional needs of a child during a hospital stay.
Josh Prince of OHG, Meghan Kelly and Talia Haviv of CHAM
PHARAMAPALOOZA 9’s theme was Fight Songs and the music that gives strength and inspires the kids at CHAM every day. For year 9, the fight to make this event the most successful yet was palpable!
In the early hours of February 9, winter storm Niko brought blizzard conditions to New York City, leaving the team behind PHARMAPALOOZA 9 worried the event would not happen. But as the old saying goes – the show must go on.
As the snow stopped and the skies cleared, PHARMAPALOOZA 9 was back on track. Agency bands braved the cold and arrived at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill in Times Square. While they fine-tuned their instruments and battled pre-show jitters backstage, a wide array of industry audience members packed the space, excited for a night of reunions and friendly competition.
Sure enough, this year’s PHARMAPALOOZA surpassed expectations. It was a night of industry-wide celebration and fiercely creative music straight from the heart – raking in over $101,000 and bringing the total charitable earnings over the past 9 years close to $900,000.
With four music industry experts graciously serving as the P9 judges, the competition was tight, but Patient & Purpose’s CHAMBALAYA had a joy-filled, crowd-rousing performance that put them on top with a unanimous vote for first place. Second place honors went to second-time participants Neon’s Max Dose for their spirited performance. The Venus Project of CDM Princeton was the last band of the night to take the stage, but their rocking performance got the audience dancing one last time and landed them in third place.
Pharmapalooza 9 winner: Patient & Purpose’s CHAMBALAYA
Next year will mark the 10th anniversary of PHARMAPALOOZA and with the great success of Pharmapalooza 9, the team is already looking to produce a special 10th anniversary show that will champion continued support for CHAM and celebrate the collective good that the healthcare advertising can do when it comes together to rock out for the kids.
