Rockers Good Charlotte are returning home to Maryland to honour the victims of the Capital Gazette newsroom shooting at an upcoming benefit concert.
The Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous stars will mark the one-month anniversary of the tragedy by headlining the Annapolis Rising: A Benefit for The Capital Gazette and Free Press event on 28 July (18), when they will be joined by guest speakers from the journalism community.
Proceeds from the show will be donated to a charity established to support the families of the victims and survivors of the attack, while money raised will also help to fund journalism scholarships.
A gunman who held a grudge against newspaper officials entered the Capital Gazette offices on 28 June and opened fire in the Annapolis newsroom, killing five members of staff and injuring many others.
The suspect, identified as Jarrod Ramos, was taken into custody at the scene, and has since been charged with five counts of first-degree murder. He remains behind bars.
Good Charlotte star Joel Madden, who hails from nearby Waldorf, reveals the rockers are proud to be performing for the community which has supported them throughout their careers.
"I feel everything starts at home, it starts in your community and this is the place in Maryland that we come from. This is the place we go back to," he told The Associated Press.
"We feel very, very deeply connected to Annapolis and it's a very important place to us. It's very important for us to show up for the city."
His twin brother and bandmate Benji Madden added, "If we can help support an event that will be uplifting for the families of the victims and the tragedy as a whole, it feels really important to be a part of that."
Joel also took to Twitter on Wednesday (11Jul18) to share his continued heartache over the newsroom attack.
"There are no words for the tragedy that happened in Annapolis," he wrote. "I've yet to be able to find any i (sic) felt I could share. My family prays for the victims, their families and everyone at the Capitol Gazette."
