Taylor Swift, Def Leppard Donating Items to Auction for Veterans

Taylor Swift and Def Leppard are among several artists paying it forward to veterans and first responders.

Swift has donated a custom-signed acoustic guitar to the Raven Drum Foundation’s 12 Drummers Drumming auction, which raises money for people who experience PTSD, trauma, and suicidal ideation, with a particular focus on trauma relief and suicide prevention for veterans and first responders. Drummer and producer Alvin Taylor has donated the drum sticks he used playing on George Harrison’s famed Thirty Three & 1/3 album, while Rick Allen, drummer for Def Leppard, lent his signature to a collection of limited edition Hysteria Funko Pop! figurines of he and his Def Leppard bandmates.  

Other items up for bid are a drum head signed by Saturday Night Live star Fred Armisen, who was previously the drummer in Chicago punk band Trenchmouth, the collector’s edition of the Emmy Award-nominated documentary, The Beatles: Get Back, an Allman Family Revival Package that includes a vintage electric guitar, a pair of drumsticks used during one of the Allman Brothers Band’s shows at Red Rocks Amphitheater and much more.

The auction opened on Veteran’s Day and closes on December 12 at 3 p.m. ET.

Raven Drum Foundation was created by Allen and his wife, singer and mental health advocate Lauren Monroe, to provide education and resources to trauma survivors, along with suicide prevention through wellness-support programs. Raven Drum recently granted $25,000 to Musicians on Call’s (MOC) VA program that brings music to patient’s bedsides.

“We thank you for your continued generosity that directly helps our mission to serve, educate, and empower Veterans, first responders, and trauma survivors,” Allen shared on Instagram to Raven Drum Foundation donors on Giving Tuesday (Nov. 29).  

Winners of the auction will be invited to join Allen, Monroe and other artists on a live Zoom call in partnership with MOC on December 15.

Photo by Terry Wyatt/Getty Images