1 February 2013: After a promising first YouTube Cover Carnival in 2012, The Pixel Project, the award-nominated volunteer-led virtual non-profit social enterprise working to end Violence Against Women (VAW) worldwide, is pleased to launch their second YouTube Cover Carnival contest which runs from 1 – 28 February 2013 in conjunction with the Valentine’s Day season. The Valentine 2013 YouTube Cover Carnival is dedicated to the Delhi Gang Rape Victim, Jyoti Singh Pandey, in honour of her courage and strength in fighting her attackers and her injuries to the very end.
Regina Yau, Founder and President of The Pixel Project said: “The Pixel Project has decided to make our Valentine 2013 YouTube Cover Carnival a musical tribute to Ms. Pandey because we believe that her death should not be in vain. We hope that the songs we have chosen for up-and-coming YouTube artistes from all over the world to cover in memory of Ms. Pandey will be a positive way of continuing the momentum of the anti-VAW activism her death inspired in communities in India and beyond.”
Ms Yau said: “Based on artiste feedback from the previous YouTube Cover Carnival, we are doing a trial run of offering two song choices for artistes to cover although there will still only be one set of winners. As Valentine’s Day is all about love and relationships, we have selected songs that celebrate healthy love that is uplifting and empowering for women and girls worldwide.” One of the songs is “Little Things” by One Direction (and written by Ed Sheeran) and selected by The Pixel Project for its portrayal of an accepting and loving relationship. The other is Whitney Houston’s “Greatest Love Of All” as voted for by the global public for the song’s emphasis on valuing and respecting oneself.
The Pixel Project is also excited to welcome YouTube stars Ali Brustofski, J Rice, Lisa Lavie and renowned YouTube music producer Mike Kalombo on board the YouTube Cover Carnival. Ms. Brustofski, Mr Rice and Ms Lavie will be joining AHMIR – YouTube’s #1 R&B group and The Pixel Project’s YouTube Music Ambassador – as the judging panel that selects the final winners. Mr Kalombo will be donating a production session for the Grand Prize Winner. Ms. Yau said: “Ms. Brustofski, Mr Rice, Ms Lavie and Mr Kalombo have all cultivated successful music careers via YouTube with huge fan followings. They also have a great track record of using their talents and influence to support worthy causes. We are very pleased to be working with all them.”
The Grand Prize Winner will receive a comprehensive package including: Free production (inclusive of arranging, mixing and mastering) of one of his or her original songs courtesy of Mike Kalombo from Kalombo Media; A cover song collaboration with J Rice (also produced by J Rice); Placement of 3 of their songs on Lost Monkey Studio’s catalogue for TV/Film licensing; and having their winning cover included in The Pixel Project’s year-end digital album. The winning music video will also be featured on AHMIR’s YouTube homepage for 3 days together with a video foreword from AHMIR. With almost 350,000 subscribers (and rising) viewing AHMIR’s channel daily, this would be a significant boost for the profile of the Grand Prize Winner.
After the contest submission period closes on 28 February 2013, 10 semi-finalists will be announced on 7 March 2013 and the public will be given 1 week to vote for 5 finalists. The finalists will be announced on 15 March, and the top three winners will be announced on 21 March 2013. The semi-finalists will be selected by The Pixel Project and AHMIR; the finalists will be chosen by public online voting and the final winners will be selected by the all-star judging panel.
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For further information, please contact:
The Music For Pixels campaign team – music4pixels@thepixelproject.net
About the Music For Pixels Campaign (http://music4pixels.thepixelproject.net)
Music For Pixels, a campaign by The Pixel Project, is the first music-based social media campaign to exclusively collaborate with YouTube artistes speaking up to prevent and stop VAW through music video PSAs while raising funds for the cause via digital music downloads. All funds raised from song proceeds donated by artistes in 2013 will go towards supporting the Celebrity Male Role Model Pixel Reveal campaign in benefit of the USA’s National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, The Pixel Project and various anti-Violence Against Women nonprofits worldwide.
About The Pixel Project (www.thepixelproject.net)
The Pixel Project is a complete virtual, volunteer-led global 501(c)3 nonprofit organisation whose mission is to raise awareness, funds and volunteer power for the cause to end violence against women using social media and new technologies. Their first project is the Celebrity Male Role Model Pixel Reveal campaign which aims to turbo-charge global awareness about VAW using social media while raising US$1 million by getting a global audience to collectively unveil a million-pixel mystery collage of Celebrity Male Role Models at US$1 per pixel.
About AHMIR (www.youtube.com/ahmirTV)
As featured in Us Weekly, Billboard, Vibe.com and AOL Entertainment, AHMIR is the #1 Most Popular R&B Group on YouTube with over 70 million video views and comments by celebrities such as Ryan Seacrest, Ashton Kutcher, Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, Perez Hilton, P!nk and more. The group has used their success to bring awareness to charity organisations including Lucy’s Love Bus, Haiti Relief Fund, American Red Cross, American Cancer Society, YMCA, The Pixel Project, and Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids. Their cover video of P!nk’s “Perfect” was named one of the top Anti-Bullying PSA’s by The Huffington Post. AHMIR is now signed to Robbins Entertainment and have just released their debut single entitled “WAR” to Top 40 radio nationwide. “WAR” is available now for purchase on iTunes.
About Ali Brustofski (http://www.youtube.com/user/AllisonBrustofski)
Ali Brustofski is a 19 year old singer/songwriter from Oakland, NJ. She was a finalist on “The Next” on the CW Network this fall, and won the 2011 Z100 Hometown Hero Award. Ali won the prestigious NY Songwriters Circle “Young Artist Award” in November, 2009 and she’s been writing and recording original songs and covers ever since. At 10, Ali performed with Nick Jonas in the “Sound of Music”, and she was the voice of Piper O’Possum for Nick Jr. on Nickelodeon from 2003 to 2007. Recently, Ali has been working with talented producers to develop her own distinctive sound and record her first EP. Her single “Rewind” was used on “The Voice” and in promos for “iCarly” on Nickelodeon.
About J.Rice (http://www.youtube.com/jriceproductions)
J Rice grew up listening to artists like Take 6, Boyz II Men, Brian Mcknight, Wynton Marsalis, Kenny G and many other R&B/Jazz greats. His parents taught him to work for everything he wanted and at about age 11 he was running a paper route to pay for his first trumpet. Later in high school he started taking his singing seriously and built his own studio in his bedroom. One day he started a YouTube channel and has since grown to over 170,000 subscribers and over 30,000,000 views. J is now working on producing and writing his own material for his 4th independent album along with writing and producing for other artists.
About Mike Kalombo (http://www.youtube.com/user/KlassicMaster)
Mike Kalombo is a music producer, songwriter and filmographer, best known for his music production on some of the most viral videos on YouTube. Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, he now resides in the United States. He has worked with both YouTube stars and music industry moguls, like Jermaine Dupri and quickly became one of the most sought after producers in the industry. Labeled the Quincy Jones of the digital era, he has collaborated with artistes such as Lisa Lavie, Sha Sha Jones, Destorm, Da Brat, Jenna Marbles , Ahmir, Erika David, Traphik, Shane Dawson, Alphacat, Wax and many more.
About Lisa Lavie (http://www.youtube.com/lisalavie1)
Lisa Lavie is a Canadian singer and songwriter originally from LaSalle, Québec. Lavie is known for using the Internet to independently promote her music and concerts. Lavie’s vocals have appeared on soundtracks of major motion pictures, and her independently produced debut album “Everything or Nothing” was released on iTunes in 2008. Lavie has received national television coverage for her vocals, and for her production of the charity collaboration video “We Are the World 25 for Haiti (YouTube Edition).” She was chosen as a vocalist for Yanni’s 2010-2011 tours of South, Central, and North America.
About Lost Monkey Studio (www.lostmoneystudio.com)
Lost Monkey is a 16-track Pro Tools studio in Hayward serving artists and bands seeking a comfortable environment in which to produce broadcast-quality sounds. The studio is owned and operated by Bay Area drummer Mike Stevens, who drew upon his experiences working in the area’s most venerable studios to open Lost Monkey in 2010. Lost Monkey is currently also building a solid roster of immensely talented West Coast artists who are working hard towards becoming some of the most seminal musicians in the world.