JUSTICE CHOIR SEEKS NEW SONGS / LYRICS
for downloadable songbook for group singing for social & eco-justice
Introducing Justice Choir: a template for a (hopefully) national singing revolution. Justice Choir will be a free, shared songbook for group singing at ‘pop-up’ style events (marches, rallies, etc) around the country. The organization’s roster will be a flexible, national mailing list of folks who want to get together locally to amplify a message of peace, social justice, eco-justice, and policy change through raising our voices together. Singers will organize through social media, and our shared repertoire will be this free, downloadable resource of new songs: the Justice Choir songbook.
The strength of this movement will depend on the strength of the songs we’re singing. So we need great new songs. We’re hoping to discover what 21st century group protest music sounds like. We are open to suggestions, ideas, dreams, and particularly looking to offer the public a stylistically-diverse book of options. Once we know what songs are in the songbook, we’ll begin building a YouTube playlist for teaching these songs to the world.
Timeline (one day more!):
- We announced our call in early March and are receiving song submissions from the general public through April 5, 2017.
- We may reach out to interested composers/songwriters/lyricists after April 5 if we have specific requests to balance the songbook. If you are interested in being part of this, please contact us by email:
VISIT OUR WEBSITE (www.justicechoir.org) FOR:
- our VIDEO announcement of Justice Choir (viewed 20,000+ times)
- BIOS of co-founders Abbie, Tesfa, and Andrea
- info on our inaugural CHAPTER, Justice Choir-Twin Cities, to be housed at Westminster Presbyterian Church, Minneapolis
- Details on the kinds of MUSIC we’re seeking
- info on the Creative Commons LICENSING of the songbook (note: this is what will make Justice Choir different: free, legal access for non-profit use)
- SUBMISSION FORM
In these last days, we are especially seeking:
- new “zipper songs” — designed to ‘zip’ new lyrics in for each event (ex. “Aint gonna let no ___ turn me round”)
- new Call & Response songs or chants
- new lyrics “sung to the tune of” — particularly new lyrics to popular songs from 1980s & 1990s (see this string on our Facebook page)
- new, relevant lyrics to old (public domain) hymn tunes
- songs that incorporate non-English lyrics
- songs that could benefit from a YouTube video for learning (hand motions, teaching harmony, rhythms, vocal percussion, dances etc).
- songs that are “portable” — effective with just the voice and body (marching, clapping, etc), without the necessity of accompaniment (for use in large marches/rallies)
- songs from a richly diverse pool of songwriters and lyricists
TO SUBMIT YOUR SONGS OR LYRICS (by midnight April 5, 2017):
Please submit using the form linked above at www.justicechoir.org
Follow us:
- Facebook: @JusticeChoir
- Twitter: @JusticeChoirALL
- Join the mailing list: http://www.justicechoir.org/join_us.html
❤ Sing on, friends! March on! ❤
Abbie Betinis, Tesfa Wondemagegnehu, & Andrea Ramsey
Co-founders, Justice Choir
www.justicechoir.org
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