Over this Thanksgiving break my brothers friend showed our family this music video featuring will.i.am, john legend, herbie hancock, nicole scherzinger, scarlett johansson, kate walsh, and others, singing along with the Yes We Can speech by Barack Obama.
If you do a quick youtube search of any government candidates' name you will see hundreds of unoffical supporter-created songs, love poems and false campaign ads. But only one of those was created in a professional Los Angeles recording studio, spearheaded by the Black-Eyed Peas’ will.i.am and involved the participation of 30 famous musicians and actors.
On the song’s Web site, YesWeCanSong.com , will.i.am says he was inspired to make the video after hearing President Obama’s modest speech after finishing second in New Hampshire. The black-and-white video is a mix of singing and speaking the words to Obama’s New Hampshire speech simultaneously over Obama’s own voice. It’s set to a simple guitar melody and considering the amount of pop stars involved, probably wouldn’t seem too odd if it was on the radio.
They said that they wanted it on national television but to get 4 minutes and 30 seconds of air time would have been impossible, but through the internet millions of people have seen the video. Many still havent seen this video but to the millions of people that have seen it have said that it is very inspiring and that it puts all other celebrity ads to shame.
This is a very simple video that shows how music artists can influence many people and show their support for others through their voices. I'm not saying that people voted for Obama because of the stars that supported him, but it doesn't hurt Obama that many were behind him.
Click here to see the video YesWeCanSong.com
They said that they wanted it on national television but to get 4 minutes and 30 seconds of air time would have been impossible, but through the internet millions of people have seen the video. Many still havent seen this video but to the millions of people that have seen it have said that it is very inspiring and that it puts all other celebrity ads to shame.
This is a very simple video that shows how music artists can influence many people and show their support for others through their voices. I'm not saying that people voted for Obama because of the stars that supported him, but it doesn't hurt Obama that many were behind him.
Click here to see the video YesWeCanSong.com
Please let me know what you think.
2 comments:
This video is so cool! I loved it and it inspired me like it inspired you and millions of other viewers. This is a unique way to reinforce President Obama's goals, one that will be able to reach many more than just his speech alone. Will.i.am uses an unconventional medium to spread this message, and it attracts a lot of people. The musicality of this video is great as well as the message. After watching this video, President Obama's goals seem attainable in a way they did not before, and I know that yes, we can.
J. Slo,
I also love this video. (I saw it again recently, clicking on your FB post, and found the video just as moving as the previous 50 times I have seen it).
It'd be nice to go farther with your blog post, though: analyze specific lines, the ways the music supports/enhances those lines, quote press reactions to the vid, polling data on voters who saw it. you get the idea -- something that will complicate the notion that the video is just simply cool.
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