On Friday, May 8, 2020, over 106,000 house music lovers came together and “HISTORY WAS MADE!”

The Frankie Knuckles Foundation, The Chosen Few DJs, and Le Nocturne Chicago united to present a 10-hour musical marathon/benefit honoring the birthday of the late legendary DJ, Ron “Heart Attack” Hardy, and to raise money to buy a headstone for his resting place.

A Go Fund Me account was established with a goal of $2,500, but to date they have raised over $8,100. The excess monies will be donated to a charity of the Hardy family’s choice. The purpose of the Go Fund Me drive is as follows:

“On March 2nd 1992 the #HouseMusic community lost one of its great pioneers, the legendary DJ Ron Hardy. Since that time, his final resting place has gone unmarked. Three years ago, Chicago attorney and co-founder of the Frankie Knuckles Foundation, the late Randy Crumpton came up with the idea to raise funds to purchase a memorial marker for Ron. Crumpton mentioned his idea to FKF President/Executive Director Frederick Dunson who then spoke with Chosen Few DJ members @DJWayneWilliams, @DJAlanKing and @DJTerryHunter about a collaboration to purchase the stone and remedy the situation.

Fast forward to this year… a few weeks ago during a conversation, Dunson mentioned the idea again to Hunter, who enthusiastically responded “Let’s do it!”

So on May 8th, to observe and celebrate what would have been Ron’s 63rd birthday, the @ChosenFewDJs + the @FrankieKnucklesFoundation join forces to host a fundraising effort to raise funds to purchase a marker. The day will consist of a marathon of DJ sets featuring ANDRE HATCHET, BILL HARDY (Ron’s nephew), CELESTE ALEXANDER , CRAIG LOFTIS, GENE HUNT, JAMIE 3:26, MIKE DUNN, RON CARROLL, TERRY HUNTER and WAYNE WILLIAMS broadcasted live from @LeNocturneChicago 12pm-10pm (CST) on their Twitch, Facebook and YouTube. Donations to the cause can be made via GoFundMe.com/For-The-Love-Of-Ron.”

Well, GO BANG! Magazine tuned in to Le Nocturne’s YouTube channel @12 noon and the party wasn’t over until 10:30 pm…10 ½ hours later. It felt like back in the day, when we’d go the the Box on a Saturday night after 12 midnight, and emerge 10 hours later to a bright Sunday morning. The comments during the event were heartfelt and hilarious. Even more entertaining were the comments after it ended. Viewers were posting comments like “let’s all meet up for breakfast”, or “my clothes are drenched”, “I threw my back out” and “Let’s go to Valois.”

The DJ line up was fierce, even including one of Ron’s nephews, Bill Hardy. Each DJ gave a Ronnie inspired performance. DJ Celeste Alexander, the only female and the final DJ, brought the house down, and was the perfect DJ finale. After her set, they teased her saying that they’re glad she didn’t throw up this time. Once before, back in the day, Celeste DJ’d at the Box and threw up in Ron’s DJ booth.

Overall, Ronnie’s marathon was an overwhelming success and it showed the power and unity of the House community! We came together, showed up, and showed out!

ONE LOVE, ONE HOUSE, ONE FAMILY!

In closing, Fredrick Dunson of the Frankie Knuckles Foundation (FKF) says, “We have been inundated with so many positive comments from a number of 106,000 viewers that tuned in via one of the several platforms that the tribute was streamed on. On behalf of the Chosen Few + the Frankie Knuckles Foundation I’d like to thank all of the individuals whose donations in honor of Ron that we received helped us surpass our goal…we couldn’t have done it without your support…again thank you for your generosity!” 

To contribute: https://www.gofundme.com/For-the-love-of-Ron

HAPPY 63RD BIRTHDAY RONNIE!!!!!!!

WE HOPE YOU’RE HAPPY WITH YOUR HOUSE FAMILY!!!

Continue RESTING IN BEATS!!!!!!

PLEASE LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS ABOUT THE EVENT OR RON HARDY MEMORIES BELOW!

#ForTheLoveOfRon



Pierre A. Evans is a freelance writer of Entertainment, Music, Art, Culture, Fashion and Current Events, and previously for SoulTrain.com, NDigo.com, ChicagoDefender.com, EmpireRadioMagazine.com, and UrbanMuseMag.com. In addition, he’s an author, singer/songwriter, actor, model, poet, dancer, and DJ. He is also the Owner of Pinnacle Entertainment Productions and the Owner/Publisher of GO BANG! Magazine. Follow him on Facebook @Pierre Andre Evans, Twitter @Playerre, on Instagram @Pierre_Andre_Evans.

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UPDATED STATEMENT ON THE 2020 CHOSEN FEW PICNIC & HOUSE MUSIC FESTIVAL

April 24, 2020

We regrettably want to share with you all that due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we are canceling the in-person Chosen Few Picnic & House Music Festival scheduled for July 4, 2020 in Chicago’s Jackson Park. In its place, we will put on the VIRTUAL Chosen Few In-House Picnic & Festival on Saturday, July 4th, featuring live-streamed performances and DJ sets from the Chosen Few DJs, and more.

The decision to transition our beloved “Woodstock of House Music” from a mass in-person gathering to a virtual one this year was not an easy one. Like many of you, we want nothing more than to get together with our fellow House Music lovers in person, just as we have done for the past 29 Julys. However, given the extraordinary time we are in, and the critical health dangers associated with large gatherings, we know this is the safest course of action for our Picnic attendees, guest performers, vendors, and neighbors. We will hold off on celebrating our official 30th Chosen Few Picnic Anniversary celebration until we convene again in person in 2021!

If you purchased a $25 Early Bird ticket(s) for 2020, you may either hold on to your ticket for the 2021 Picnic, or request a full refund from our ticketing partner, See Tickets. All ticket holders will be receiving an email from See Tickets today concerning the refund process. You may also click here to access the refund form. Please note that to be eligible for a refund, all refund requests must be submitted to See Tickets by May 22, 2020 at 11:59 pm (CDT). If you have any questions concerning any hotel reservations you may have made for the Picnic, please contact our Hospitality Director Toy Foster at Toy@fsgtravel.net.

The VIRTUAL Chosen Few In-House Picnic & Festival coming on Saturday, July 4, 2020 will be a free event, although we will accept donations and will be contributing a portion of any donations to charity. We will be in touch over the coming weeks with more concrete details about this event. In the meantime, we pray that you and your loved ones are taking good care of yourselves and each other, following public health directives and advice, and keeping music close to your heart.

Yours in the music,

The Chosen Few DJs – Wayne, Jesse, Tony, Alan, Andre, Kim, Terry, and Mike

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All large gatherings planned for summertime in Illinois may need to be canceled, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Thursday.

When asked during his daily coronavirus briefing if organizers of major summer events should plan on limiting crowds or making adjustments, Pritzker said he thinks “everybody needs to think seriously about canceling large summer events.”

“Until we have a vaccine, which is months and months away, I would not risk having large groups of people getting together anywhere,” Pritzker said. “And I think that’s hard for everybody to hear, but that’s just a fact. They’re just, you know, even with testing and tracing and treating, it’s necessary for us to begin to make changes. It isn’t enough for me to say that it’s okay to have a big festival with a whole bunch of people gathering together.”

Thursday marked one calendar month since the start of Illinois’ stay-at-home order and many residents hoped summer would bring about a change from the isolated life the coronavirus crisis brought. The Chicago area is home to several major summer events and large festivals like Lollapalooza, Pitchfork, the Taste of Chicago and more – all of which generate thousands of attendees.

Earlier this month, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Lollapalooza remained “on schedule,” but organizers have delayed their lineup announcement for the four-day music festival, which usually releases its headliners this time of year and opens ticket sales.

On March 24, Lollapalooza organizers tweeted “While we stay in close contact with local officials, we are well underway with planning for Lolla to take place as soon as it’s safe for us all to be together in Grant Park.”

Meanwhile, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases across the state climbed over 16,000 Thursday, with 528 deaths, health officials announced.

Cases have been reported in more than 80 of Illinois’ 102 counties.

But despite their continual rise, officials said the numbers showed a “glimmer of hope.”

“The rate at which they’re increasing is less and that is a good sign,” Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, said Wednesday. “We’re not seeing the exponential growth we were seeing before.”

Health experts have stressed that it remains unclear when Illinois will reach its peak number of cases, though a recent projection estimated the peak could arrive this weekend. Still, Illinois’ stay-at-home order is set to continue until April 30, unless otherwise extended, and Pritzker said he doesn’t believe it will be lifted sooner.

“Look, you know, we talk a lot about peaking and we talk a lot about how we’re bending the curve, the curve is still upward trajectory,” Pritzker said. “And so just because we’re bending the curve does not mean it’s bending down yet. And so people need to understand that, that it is unlikely that that we will be able to lift this stay at home before April 30. And indeed, as we approach April 30, we will be thinking about what are the restrictions or rules that we need to set going forward after April 30? Because it isn’t going to be unlike what some have said, you know, at the federal level. It isn’t going to be that all of a sudden you’re going to drop the you know, stay-at-home and every other restriction.”

Illinois has been working to bring once-shuttered hospitals back online and has transformed Chicago’s McCormick Place convention center into an alternate care facility for hundreds of patients with mild symptoms should hospital capacity be overwhelmed.

Across Illinois and the country, Americans are being encouraged to wear masks or face coverings if they have to head outside.

“I am worried about people throwing caution to the wind and seeing a nice day outside,” Pritzker said. “And thinking that we’re they’re not in danger. You heard Dr. Ezike talking about how some young people think that they’re invincible, that this virus won’t affect them. So everybody needs to know that if we are improving – and it’s still up in the air – but if we are improving here in the state, it is because people are staying at home. That is something to keep in mind.”