Country music artist Darius Rucker was among those honored at Nashville, Tennessee’s Lower Broadway at the Musicians on Call Event. Sam Hunt, Jon Pardi, Charles Esten and The War & Treaty united to pay tribute to Rucker as well as music business head Leigh Parr Malleus at the Millions of Moments event at the Wildhorse Saloon.
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Musicians on Call, a charitable organization that facilitates live and recorded music for 1 million plus people in medical settings around the country, was established back in 1999. To honor their lasting impact, performances were held recently to commemorate this milestone. Darius Rucker and Dave Malleus received awards—the Music Heals Golden Ukulele and Leadership in Music Golden Ukulele respectively—to mark the celebration.
“I try and give back as much as I can and help people as much as I can,” Rucker explained to People before the event. “[This honor] means the world. I try to do as much as I can, and I try to do it as quietly as I can. But when an organization like Musicians on Call that has meant so much to me wants to take a second out to honor me at a charity event, it’s really cool.”
The event raised more than $250,000 for Musicians on Call through ticket sales and auction items. Some of the remarkable prizes included a chance to join Cole Hauser in Montana for an unforgettable Yellowstone experience, tickets to Aladdin on Broadway in NYC as well as a guitar personally signed by Eric Church – just to name a few!
Musicians on Call celebrated ‘1 million moments’
“I love this organization so much, and I love [Darius] so much and between those two things, it’s a great night in Nashville,” Esten explained. “I’ve seen the power of music in a hospital room, a hospice center, and a VA. I’ve seen the power when someone walks in with a guitar.”
Malleus has been teaming up with Musicians on Call since the early days of 2010. She can attest to their immense success when they celebrated 50,000 moments. “To be here celebrating more than 1 million is astounding,” she pointed out. “To be able to celebrate Darius, who has donated so much of his time to the organization, is incredible.”
Esten opened the night with an inspiring acoustic set. Musicians on Call was honored by both on-stage and video testimonials. Hunt also gave a meaningful discourse concerning music’s potency for restoration. Pardi also stood alongside Hunt in support of their shared cause.
“Medicine has evolved quite a bit thanks to science, but I don’t think we’ve even begun to understand the healing power of music on the soul and the spirit,” Hunt said. “I know in my life I’m redeemed spiritually on a regular basis by songs. Thank God for it.”
