Arcade Fire Frontman Releases Signature Coffee For Charity

The frontman of US indie mainstays Arcade Fire, Win Butler, has announced the release of RaRa Coffee, a non-profit line of delicious water-flavouring beans cooked up in collaboration with Philadelphia-based coffee company La Colombe.

Using the band's social media channels to make the announcement early this morning (AEST), Butler conveyed his excitement to be a part of the joint venture, which uses specialty coffee grown in Haiti (and roasted in Philly), with all proceeds going to charitable healthcare institution Partners In Health and the Haiti Coffee Academy.

Butler, whose wife and bandmate, Régine Chassagne, is of Haitian descent, goes into a little more detail as to his motivations for getting into the beanwater business on RaRa's official product page:

"Being in the mountains of Haiti, it is hard not to think about coffee," he wrote. "The elevation, the sunshine, the soil, and incredible people, who have been growing the plant on tiny family plots for centuries. Haiti is buzzing with potential and possibility, and coffee can be an important part of its rebirth!

"I'd heard about what La Colombe was doing with their coffee academy so I approached them to see if they'd make this coffee for me, because coffee is so important to Haiti, and Haiti is so important to me and everyone in the band."

Win Butler's RaRa coffee will set you back US$15 (about $18.20) for a 12-ounce bag of whole beans. Here's hoping it's worth the postage.