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Provo • If The Moth & The Flame lead singer Brandon Robbins ever felt like he owed Corey Fox, he's now paid the Velour music club owner back in full.
After all, what's the loss of one kidney compared to the loss of the man who helped launch Robbins' career and so many others?
On Saturday, the two stood onstage at Velour Live Music Gallery in Provo for the first time since Robbins gave Fox one of his kidneys in December. They hugged and raised their shirts, showing off the matching scars on their stomachs to applause from the crowd of close family and friends.
"Brandon is quite literally a blood brother to me," Fox said onstage. "There's no words. What can I say to the guy who gave me a kidney and gave me my life?"
Fox had been sequestered under doctor's orders for six months to prevent infection or organ rejection while he recovered from the surgery, and Saturday's celebration marked not only his return to Velour but The Moth & The Flame's return to the stage.
"We had just such an immense amount of help in the last year, so we wanted to get everyone together to thank Brandon [and] to thank people who have been really impactful in getting the story out and contributing in different ways," said Kaneischa Johnson, Velour's manager. "We wanted to get everyone together tonight and put Brandon on a stage and tell him thank you in as many ways as we can."
Last year, Fox found out the chronic kidney failure he'd been dealing with since he was a teenager had worsened. He needed a transplant, and he was immediately met with a surge of support from the Provo music community. More than 100 people were tested to see if they were a match for the donation, and Neon Trees and Imagine Dragons, two major rock bands that got their start at Velour, played an acoustic benefit concert to raise money for the surgery.
Though statistics from the National Kidney Foundation show an average of 13 people die each day while waiting for a kidney transplant, Robbins said he was optimistic when he found out Fox needed a kidney.
"I was sad for a minute," he said. "But honestly, when we left that night [after hearing the news], I was really hopeful because I knew [that] of anyone who needed a kidney, Corey was probably the best person because so many people love him."
Robbins also said he immediately had a feeling he would be the donor.
"Maybe 15 or 20 minutes after [Fox had] finished explaining everything, I just remember feeling like I was going to be the one to give him a kidney," he said. "I kind of felt like, yeah, we're a match."
A friend of Fox's was initially selected as the donor but was later removed from the process by the operating surgeon. Afterward, Robbins started the testing process and said he later received a call from the doctor that he and Fox were a near-perfect match.
Mark Garbett, who plays keyboards for The Moth & The Flame, said Robbins never hesitated.
"Like a week later on tour, I was just like, 'Dude, let's get serious. Are you going to really give him your kidney? That's kind of crazy,' " Garbett said. "And he was just like, 'No, I'm doing it.' He never had any doubts about it, which was really crazy to me."
Robbins and Johnson said the outpouring of support Fox received is a testament to the tight-knit community in Provo and the love people have for Velour and its owner.
"[Fox] has changed people's lives," Johnson said. "It's an endless list of the way people's lives have been impacted because of him. People ask, 'What's so special about Provo?' and it's like, 'It's not Provo. It's Velour. It's Corey.' "
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