LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Environmental activists led by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore announced plans on Thursday for a worldwide string of pop concerts in July featuring Sheryl Crow, Red Hot Chili Peppers and scores of others to mobilize action to stop global warming.
The Live Earth concerts on July 7 will take place in Shanghai, Sydney, Johannesburg, London and cities to be decided in Brazil, Japan and the United States.
The shows will feature more than 100 of the world's top musical acts, organizers said. In addition to Crow and the Chili Peppers, U.S. artists who have signed up include Black Eyed Peas, Bon Jovi, Kelly Clarkson, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw and rapper Snoop Dogg.
"In order to solve the climate crisis, we have to reach billions of people," Gore said in a statement. "We are launching SOS and Live Earth to begin a process of communication that will mobilize people all over the world to take action.
"The climate crisis will only be stopped by an unprecedented and sustained global movement. We hope to jump-start that movement right here, right now, and take it to a new level on July 7, 2007," Gore said.
The Live Earth concerts follow the model of the 1985 Live Aid and 2005 Live8 international concerts organized by Irish rock star Bob Geldof.
Live Aid raised money for African famine relief and Live8 sought to pressure world leaders to eradicate the debts of the world's poorest nations.
Gore, who lost his bid for U.S. president in 2000, has since become one of the most visible activists on global warming. His "An Inconvenient Truth" documentary has been nominated for an Oscar at the February 25 Academy Awards.