Kevin Lyman receives Billboard Live Music award
Vans Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman is set to receive a Billboard Live Music award.
Lyman is getting the award for his work with FEND, his anti-opioid initiative.
Read more: Someone knew: Kevin Lyman responds to opioid-related deaths
After years of working alongside non-profits at Warped Tour, Lyman launched FEND earlier this year as an app. The name stands for Full Energy No Drugs, which is an anti-opioid initiative.
“Traveling the country the last few years,” Lyman explained during the launch event, “the stories always drift to opioids. I’ve always been the person [to] jump in and try [to help]…the FEND app is educational. It’s always about education to me. There’s just no education out there; we’re just starting to play catch-up now on the opioid epidemic and crisis.”
The goal of the app is to educate young people about the opioid crisis, as well as promote engagement and empathy.
“My hope for this project is [for it] to become like what the Truth movement was for smoking,” he continued. “That this becomes a nationwide movement [with] lots of people involved, everyone working toward saving lives.”
Now, Billboard is recognizing Lyman’s work with FEND. Lyman is receiving the Humanitarian Award for the app and its use of gamification to warn the youth about the dangers of prescription drug abuse.
The Warped Tour founder award is part of the Billboard Live Music Awards, alongside artists and industry names such as Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Sharon Osbourne.
You can learn more about FEND here.
