Roland Mandel, a terminally ill fan of Pearl Jam, has joined the band onstage as part of his final wishes.
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Mandel, who was diagnosed with ALS a year ago and is now wheelchair-bound per a Loudwire report, only has “a few months to live”, and wanted to see the band perform in Berlin as part of his last wishes.
Mandel’s dreams of attending Pearl Jam’s June 21 concert in Berlin were almost dashed after finding out that all 12 of the arena’s wheelchair-accessible spots had already been reserved.
His friends and family then wrote in to the concert organiser and venue to explain Mandel’s plight and eventually secured a spot for him to witness the concert from the side of the stage.
During the concert, Pearl Jam performed a cover of the Ramones’ ‘I Believe In Miracles’ before Mandel was wheeled out onstage to share a moment with the band and crowd.
“He should also experience this special night. He worked his ass off to be here tonight,” Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder said to the crowd in attendance. “We love you Roland,” Vedder added.
Watch the wholesome and heartwarming moment as fans cheered Roland on below.
What a moment! We did it everyone. Here’s Roland getting to live out a dream and getting a wonderful ovation. @AxelPicker #RVMforRoland #pearljam pic.twitter.com/LU1z3yM1tv
— Live On 4 Legs Podcast (@liveon4legspod) June 21, 2022
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Mandel’s wife said to German outlet Taz following the concert: “It was so unbelievable. He was so excited, so positive, so full of adrenaline. This stays for eternity.”
Earlier this month, Pearl Jam announced October Drift, Fatherson, Johnny Marr, Temples, Petrol Girls, James & The Cold Gun, PEAKS!, Connor Selby and many more as supporting acts for their upcoming shows at BST Hyde Park on July 8 and 9.
The newly announced acts will join the likes of Pixies, Stereophonics, Imelda May and more who were previously announced to support Pearl Jam at the gigs. Tickets remain on sale for Pearl Jam’’s BST Hyde Park gigs – find any remaining ones here.