Def Leppard News - VIVIAN CAMPBELL To Raise Money For Music Education/Animals On DEF LEPPARD's Stadium Tour

Tuesday, 18th February 2020

VIVIAN CAMPBELL To Raise Money For Music Education/Animals On DEF LEPPARD's Stadium Tour

By Chele Drappel

Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell was interviewed recently by Washington radio to promote the 20/20 Vision tour.

Vivian spoke to Scott Rusk of 98.9 KKZX radio in Spokane, WA to promote the 20/20 Vision tour.

Vivian talked about the U.S. stock market, Coronavirus, his current health,2018 tour with Journey, digital catalogue online, 2018/2020 Stadium Tour, 20/20 Vision Tour With ZZ Top, influences/Rory Gallagher, Thin Lizzy/Gary Moore, no plans for retirement, The Stadium Tour and his new charitable initiative.

The Stadium Tour Charity Initiative

Vivian mentioned his plans to raise money for music education in schools in 27 of the cities the band will play this summer on The Stadium Tour.

In the other four cities he will raise money for animal welfare and talked about wanting to give back after Def Lepaprd's recent run of renewed success.

The Stadium Tour/20/20 Vision Tour

He also said how much he and the rest of the band are looking forward to playing with ZZ Top.

Two Sides Of If Album/ZZ Top

And recalled working with Billy Gibbons on his blues solo album in 2005.

Current Health/Coronavirus

He spoke briefly about the Coronavirus (no, I haven't heard anything about that either...) and his own health issues with continued good news about his condition and ongoing Immunotherapy treatment.

Fortunately he did not link to virus to any brand of American beer... (LOL).

Listen to the full 10 minute interview below.

Visit the Tour News section. For more news on future tour plans.

Visit the Album News section for more news on new music (based on band member quotes).

98.9 KKZX/Scott Rusk - Vivian Campbell Interview Quotes - (Transcribed by dltourhistory)

Coronavirus

"I'd say it's inevitable, it's coming. But no I'm trying not to get too concerned. It's one of those things, you know, everyone's been talking about this sort of an outbreak coming in the pipeline and here it is you know."

"Yeah I mean we do travel a lot and we do meet a lot of people and shake a lot of hands. And spend a lot of time in airports and stuff. So we'll see you know."

His Current Health

"It's going good. I've been very fortunate. I do Immunotherapy. About once a month I get juiced up with this wonderful drug that I was part of a clinical trial of for the first two years."

"So I've been doing it over five years. I'm going to Boston for my next infusion on Monday and that will be number 62. So I'm very fortunate with that it's kind of holding it in place. The side effects are minimal. I'm very tolerant to them 'cause I'm stubborn and Irish."

"And it allows me to continue with my life and my work. So it's all good. So until something better comes along it works for me."

2018 Tour/Digital Catalogue

"The band's always been busy and we've always worked. A couple of things have changed in the past several years. Number one we finally got our entire catalogue online. We just a nutshell, we had an ongoing dispute for many many years with our original record company 'cause our contract with the company pre-dated all of the digital technology distribution and iTunes and Spotify and all that."

"So there was no mechanism in place for appropriate payment. And so we had a moratorium for many years on our catalogue and I think that kind of didn't help us with younger generations. And then finally we got, January I think of 2018, we got our catalogue online."

"And that kind of opened the doors. Opened a lot of ears of the younger generation to Def Leppard's music and that coincided with our doing this massive tour. 60 date North American tour with Journey including ten stadium shows."

"And you know we noticed, as we had been noticing for years, but exponentially in that year that a large percentage of our audience are now young enough to be our kids."

"So we crossed that generational barrier where we're playing to people outside of our own generation. And as such our audience had grown and that continued over the last couple of years."

"And as has been evidenced by the pre sales for this summer stadium tour with Motley Crue and Poison and Joan Jett. I know that probably fifty percent of the audience are gonna be that demographic. And that's very encouraging 'cause not only does it bring more and more people into Def Leppard's shows. But it also brings more youthful energy."

"Which is something that we completely thrive upon as a band. I mean we feed off the energy of an audience. The more that an audience gives to us the more we give back. That's always been vital to our show."

2018/2020 Stadium Tour

"Yeah it was great. I mean that definitely motivated us to kind of work more frequently at a different level. That and losing all our money in the stock market this past week really lit a fire under our ass."

20/20 Vision Tour With ZZ Top

"Yeah I think there's 16 shows total with ZZ. You know we've shared the stage with ZZ a couple of times at festivals in Europe over the years. But this is the first time we've ever actually put a tour together with them."

"And we are all big big fans of the band and we have been since our teenage years. I mean I remember you know my cousin turning me on to ZZ Top and then Billy Gibbons as a guitarist was an influence."

"I got to meet Billy. Actually I got to work with him about fifteen years ago I did a solo blues record. It was an album of old blues covers. And I called him. I got his number from someone in the industry and I called him up and I said sorry for calling, yoiu don't know me. My name is Viv Campbell I play guitar for Def Leppard."

"And I knew he was a big fan of the Peter Green era of Fleetwood Mac. You know early Fleetwood Mac. And I said I'm doing a Fleetwood Mac song I know you're a fan is there any chance you'd play on it?. And to my surprise he called me back and not only did he come and play on the Fleetwood Mac cover but he also wrote a song specifically for me for that record."

"And he was just a great character you know. I've met other heroes of mine over the years and it hasn't gone well you know. So I do actually subscribe to the theory that you shouldn't mee your heroes 'cause you'll only be disappointed, but Billy did not disappoint. He was a wonderful human being. A great man and a great wealth of knowledge and stories and just great to be around."

"So I know we're all thrilled to be going on tour with ZZ this year finally."

When will you know it's time to hang it up?

"It won't be. When I'm dead, when I stop breathing that's when I'll stop working. I mean I have no plans to retire. I have no interest in it. I, you know, to me the saying is it's all I ever wanted to do and I've been fortunate that it is all I've ever done. I see no reason to stop working. I don't know what I would do you know."

"I think in my case If I stop playing guitar I'd be just waiting to die. I mean even when I was doing my cancer treatments. Even at the worst of it when was doing chemo and stem cell and stuff. Well not when I was stem cell 'cause I couldn't leave the hospital, but I've been on tour when I've been doing hardcore chemo and I didn't have any hair on my head."

"I didn't even have eyebrows, but I think it was a big part of helping me deal with it was the fact that I continued to be able to do my work."

"And on that subject I'd just like to say I'm very grateful to my band mates in Def Leppard that they took a chance on me and afforded me that opportunity. To work when I was in that state. But I really, I think it helped me through it you know."

"We realise that there's a lot fo hard work and we know 'cause we've put in the hard work over the years. But you know when you're out there on stage and especially, like I say, when we see our audience growing. You know we're in our late 50s and a couple of us are in the 60s now and to go out there and to see people young enough to be your children just really really enjoying the show and the energy that that gives. You know it's wonderful."

"We realise how blessed we are to be able to do this."

The Stadium Tour Charity Work

"Well this year for The Stadium Tour it's a great opportunity because playing to so many people, to give back. And I'm in the process right now of putting together a charitable initiative. That will have a number of different facets to it."

"Primarily though I'm gonna try and work with my guitar company Gibson and Epiphone to try and support music education for children in schools in the cities that we're gonna play in."

"So I'm in negotiations with an organisation that's nationwide that's in 27 of them. There's 31 cities on our stadium tour. The remaining cities and shows I'm gonna try and spare some money towards local animal rescue."

"'Cause my little dog Stu. Rock Star Stu is a little rescue dog and he's turned out to be a gem. You know not just to me and my wife but to a lot of other people and we bring him on tour with us. And I'm gonna take him out to try and help my raise s0me money for that."

"So a this point in our career you know. The business has been very very good to us and it's time to really start alooking at giving back. So I'm excited by that you know. That's another aspect of the summer tour that's gonna be a lot of work but I think it's probably gonna be the most rewarding of all."

Rock Star Stu Page/Charity Info

"This sounds kind of weird. This is my dog's Instagram account. I mean that' certainly gonna be a primary source of information. it will be probably a month or so or six weeks before we have it all together and a plan in place."

"And it'll be on there and on all the Def Leppard socials. You know we will certainly be putting it across all the platforms."

"Gibson guitars, Epiphone guitars. Def Leppard. Rock Star Stu. You know we're gonna try and get the word out to as many people as possible 'cause obviously we wanna try ans raise as much money as possible for these causes."

Def Leppard 2020.

Def Leppard - 20/20 Vision North American Tour Dates

September 21 - Albany, NY @ Times Union Center
September 23 - Virginia Beach, VA @ Veteran United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach
September 25 - Knoxville, TN @ Thompson-Boling Arena
September 26 - Brandon, MS @ Brandon Amphitheater - (First time in this city)
September 28 - Orange Beach, AL @ The Wharf Amphitheater
September 30 - Bossier City, LA @ CenturyLink Center