A benefit rock concert with In-N-Out Burger’s owner Lynsi Snyder-Ellingson will return to the House of Blues Anaheim on Saturday, Oct. 15.
“Rock 2 Freedom” will feature Tommy DeCarlo, lead singer of the rock band Boston, as well as .48 Special, In-N-Out’s In-N-Out’s “family band.”
DeCarlo’s set will include some hits by Boston, which hasn’t toured since 2017. Its catalog includes “More Than a Feeling” and “Don’t Look Back.”
He fronts his own self-titled band, DeCarlo, and has a solo album coming out in December.
“We’re really excited to have him. We’re blessed that he’s wanting to be a part of what we’re doing,” said Snyder-Ellingson in a joint phone interview with her husband, Sean Ellingson.
Rock 2 Freedom will raise funds to fight substance abuse. It benefits Slave 2 Nothing, a foundation set up the Ellingsons in 2016 that also combats human trafficking.
The campaign extends to In-N-Out restaurants, which have fundraising cannisters next to the cash registers and posters with QR codes telling success stories of people who have been helped by Slave 2 Nothing’s efforts. The foundation helps out grass-roots organizations and this year has awarded $2 million dollars to 101 to nonprofit organizations in the seven states where In-N-Out Burger has restaurants, according to a news release.
Throughout October, Slave 2 Nothing will match gifts 3-to-1 to a maximum of $250,000.
In-N-Out’s band will perform for about an hour. The lineup of .48 Special includes Lynsi Snyder-Ellingson on bass, Sean Ellingson on lead guitar and members from In-N-Out’s management team.
This is the second Rock 2 Freedom event at the House of Blues Anaheim, on the upper level of Anaheim GardenWalk, a half a block from Disneyland.
“It’s an awesome experience to be able to play there,” Sean Ellsingson said. “You know that everything’s going to sound absolutely amazing. Just to play on the same stage as so many big names. It’s a very cool experience.”
The set list will be made of songs relevant to overcoming substance abuse, said Lynsi Snyder Ellingson, as it was for the first show in 2021.
“The last song we did was ‘Come Together,’ by the Beatles. That song was lifting things up and coming together to raise money to fight this and to really make a difference and save people’s lives.”
Rock 2 Freedom
When: 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 15; doors open at 7:15 p.m.
Where: House of Blues Anaheim, 400 Disney Way, No. 337, Anaheim
General admission: $100
Information: events.innout.com, in-n-out.com, slave2nothing.org