Jack Black, Fred Armisen, Margaret Cho Take on Go-Go’s Classics at Backyard Benefit

Donick Carey, a former writer for The Simpsons and Late Night With David Letterman, is using his Hollywood credentials for good, hosting an annual fundraiser for the Musack Foundation in the backyard of his Hancock Park home. The 2025 edition, which took place on Aug. 23, featured luminaries from music and comedy — including Jack Black, Fred Armisen, Tom Lennon, Margaret Cho and members of The Go-Go’s — who came together with the goal of raising $800,000 for the organization. Musack serves music programs and teachers around the world by providing instruments and grants for equipment and instructors. Among its current initiatives is an effort to replace instruments lost in the L.A. wildfires.

For the few hundred in attendance, the performances — which clocked in at over 7 hours — were worth the price of admission alone. But add to the equation local merchants and eateries and the vibes abounded, which is not to say the cause got lost in the commotion. From speeches to auctions, encouraging kids to explore music was top of mind for all, along with eliciting laughs.

Indeed, between Armisen’s multiple “skit” bands (the SNL alum was accompanied by the fantastical Wolves of Glendale), Tom Lennon performing as his Reno 911 character Lieutenant Dangle and Black channeling the late Ozzy Osbourne, absurdity ruled the day into night but not without musicality. Proving their punk rock chops were singers Lisa Loeb and Letters to Cleo’s Kay Hanley, who joined The Go’s (Charlotte Caffey, Jane Wiedlin and Gina Schock) for Go-Go’s classics “Our Lips are Sealed” and “This Town,” respectively. Cho tackled “Head Over Heels,” Lennon delivered “Vacation,” Kathleen Hanna took on “Fun With Ropes” and Black led “We Got The Beat” — weaving in a snippet of of Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid” — for the grand finale featuring all of the day’s performers: teen band Sister Sister; Lynval Golding and Hannah Hu (The Specials) with The Aggrolites; Robyn Hitchcock with Lol Tolhurst (The Cure) and David J (Love and Rockets, Bauhaus), Dead Pioneers, Crush and The Freeze.