Tony O’Malley is a singer and piano player in the soul tradition who formed the legendary groove band Kokomo. Although he has worked with pop creators 10CC, Motown’s Martha Reeves & the Vandellas and played on a numerous albums including Bob Dylan’s ‘Desire’, these days Tony prefers to concentrate on recording and performing his own music at http:tonyomalley.bandcamp.com
1. How did you come to know about The Pixel Project? Tell us why you decided to take part in The Pixel Project’s “16 For 16” Digital EP.
I’d sent ‘Nicoletta’ to mutual friend Deeyah*, who forwarded the song to The Pixel Project. Once accepted, we were more than happy to participate with Regina Yau and her team.
Editor’s note: Deeyah is a prominent musician, women’s rights activist and founder of AVA Projects working to end the scourge of Honour Killing.
2. What inspired you and Marty Townsend to write “Nicoletta”?
We wrote the song after hearing that a good friend had been brutally beaten and abused by her baby’s father.
3. Violence Against Women is usually pigeonholed as a women’s issue and it can be an uphill task getting men and boys involved in stopping the violence. Why is ending Violence against Women important to you as a man?
The Other Peoplewere formed in July 2004 in Mumbai, India. They are known to audiences for their exciting performances and adding an original twist to every song they perform. T.O.P has opened for the international artistes including Saving Abel, Michael Learns to Rock, DJ Edward Maya, DJ Diamond, Lacuna Coil and Bedouin Soundclash; and have performed alongside Pop sensation Jay Sean. The band is currently expanding their repertoire of original songs and is in the process of recording their debut album. They are also the winners of The Pixel Project’sFall 2012 YouTube Cover Carnival contest.
1. Congratulations on winning the Grand Prize in the Fall 2012 YouTube Cover Carnival contest! How does it feel to win while helping the cause to end Violence Against Women?
Thank You! It’s the best feeling The Other People have had in 8 years of being together. Just being able to work with The Pixel Project to help raise awareness baout Violence against Women is a privilege in itself and having won the grand prize in the contest makes it even more worthwhile. Now in our own small way, we can hopefully contribute to bringing an end to violence against women the world over.
2. With 1 in 3 women worldwide facing gender-based violence in their lives, pretty much everybody would know a woman or girl who has faced some form of violence. In fact, India has been voted as the worst country for women among the G20 countries. Has any of the members of The Other People been affected by or witnessed Violence Against Women and how has that help shape your attitude towards women and girls?
Hearing of such incidents and actually witnessing them is not the same. We have been fortunate not to have witnessed these violent acts against women first hand; however, it is something we read and hear about daily – the daily news is all about rape, acid attacks and women being beaten up. We hope never to witness such atrocities and try our best to educate people through the cause we are supporting. Continue reading →
Pete Ahonen, an East Bay native / singer-songwriter — pairs his blend of ‘alt-country / folk-rock’ with an incredible knack for storytelling, a unique voice and raw, honest delivery that draws the listener in and makes them feel like they’re witnessing something real… something special. When you see Pete perform, you definitely get the impression that he’s not just playing the music — he is the music. Pete’s first full-length release recently launched in November – 2012 through Lost Monkey Records.
1. Tell us why you decided to take part in The Pixel Project’s “16 For 16” Digital EP.
Your heart and your music together have a way of becoming stagnant if you’re just thinking about yourself all the time. You see all these musicians who make a lot of money, who have big record contracts, and who are just too self focused. I believe that we weren’t created this way – we were made to give pieces of ourselves back to others and I hope this song can do that in some way.
2. What inspired you to write “A Day Will Come”?
I was watching a documentary about human trafficking and one of the stories in particular really got to me. Basically a woman was kidnapped and sold into sexual slavery. When the authorities had presumed her dead, her husband didn’t give up and continued searching for her. He finally rescued her after 7 years, and all the obstacles and personal hell she had to face in the aftermath were both humbling and inspiring. “A Day Will Come” was inspired by her story, but it’s not necessarily just about that. It’s really a metaphor that’s meant to reach people on many different levels. Continue reading →
1. AHMIR has been The Pixel Project’s YouTube Music Ambassador since you started as their “Artiste of the Month” back in April 2012. Since then AHMIR has been actively involved with The Pixel Project on the Fall 2012 YouTube Cover Carnival and now, the “16 For 16” digital EP. What makes you so supportive of The Pixel Project and their “Music For Pixels” campaign?
Sing-Sing: We are supportive of The Pixel Project and their “Music for Pixels” campaign because their stance on violence against women aligns directly with ours. For a number of years we have discussed ways of using our platform, as artistes, to bring awareness to this issue. Once we got word of The Pixel Project, we jumped at the opportunity to collaborate with them in support of their campaign. Continue reading →
25 November 2012:The Pixel Project is proud to present their first annual 16 For 16 charity digital EP featuring songs from YouTube and other independent artistes from around the world saying NO to violence against women (VAW) while raising funds for The Pixel Project. The EP is launched on the International Elimination of Violence Against Women Day as both a Music For Pixels programme as well as a part of The Pixel Project’s year-end 16 For 16 campaign in honour of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence.
The 16 For 16 digital EP is the third Music For Pixels programme to kick off in 2012. Regina Yau, Founder and President of The Pixel Project said: “Music For Pixels mainly concentrates on working with YouTube artistes. However, since we started the campaign, we have also been contacted by artistes who do not have a presence on YouTube but are keen to use their music to speak out against VAW. We developed the EP as a platform for showcasing their anti-VAW music via YouTube and digital downloads.”
The EP includes 5 artistes from around the world. Each artiste has created a music video PSA of their song in the Music For Pixels format which includes artiste statements against VAW and key global VAW statistics. The EP is headlined by AHMIR – YouTube’s #1 R&B group and The Pixel Project’s YouTube Music Ambassador. Other participating artistes are: Pete Ahonen – a Folk-Rock singer-songwriter and Lost Monkey Records artiste from California, USA; Sarah Carpio – a Pop singer-songwriter and anti-human trafficking activist from Mexico; The Other People – a Pop-Rock band from India and winner of The Pixel Project’s Fall 2012 YouTube Cover Carnival; and Tony O’Malley – a Jazz-Pop singer-songwriter and pianist from the UK.
Ms Yau said: “Music is one of the most powerful ways of spreading important social justice messages that would be difficult to talk about otherwise. With VAW being a taboo topic in many cultures and communities, we and the artistes on board this EP hope that this collection of 5 songs will inspire listeners worldwide to break their silence and take action to stop VAW in their communities. The songs are specially selected or written to boost the spirits of women and girls who have experienced and survived VAW and to bring a little hope in their lives over the year-end holiday season when incidences of VAW (especially domestic violence and female genital mutilation) spike.”
This limited edition EP is available from 25 November 2012 to 28 February 2013 from major digital retailers worldwide including iTunes and Amazon. With prices ranging from US$4.95 to US$6.45 depending on region and retailer, it is an affordable way for the global online community to give to the cause. Thanks to the pro bono distribution services of Horus Music and the generosity of the participating artistes, 100% of the proceeds will go towards supporting the development of The Pixel Project’s Celebrity Male Role Model Pixel Reveal campaign that is currently in beta mode and is scheduled for launch in 2013. The Pixel Reveal campaign aims to raise US$1 million in benefit of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, The Pixel Project and other anti-VAW nonprofits around the world.
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 through innovative, powerful viral campaigns across various online and virtual channels including social media. 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.
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. The campaign currently comprises 3 distinct programmes including Artiste of the Month, the YouTube Cover Carnival contest and the 16 For 16 digital EP.
21 September 2012: The Pixel Project, the award-nominated global volunteer-led virtual non-profit social enterprise working to end Violence Against Women (VAW) worldwide, is proud to announce and warmly congratulate the three top winners of their Fall 2012 YouTube Cover Carnival competition:
The Grand Prize Winner is The Other People from India with their harmony-rich R&B style arrangement of “Dark Side”. They will receive a comprehensive package worth at least US$1400 including: Free production, mixing and mastering of one of their original songs courtesy of Lost Monkey Studio; Placement of that original song on Lost Monkey’s catalogue for TV/Film licensing; Free distribution of that original song by Horus Music; Having their winning cover of ‘Dark Side’ included in The Pixel Project’s year-end “16 For 16” charity digital EP. Their YouTube Cover of “Dark Side” will also be featured on the YouTube homepage of The Pixel Project’s YouTube Music Ambassador – YouTube’s Number One R&B band, AHMIR – for 3 days together with a video foreword from AHMIR.
The Second Prize Winner is Jess Greenberg from England who submitted a lovely, laidback acoustic cover of “Dark Side”. She will receive a package worth US$500++ including: 1 of her original songs mixed and mastered by Lost Monkey Studio and placed in their licensing catalogue for potential TV/Film placement; 1 autographed AHMIR CD and one AHMIR t-shirt; and free-of-charge digital distribution by Horus Music for the winner’s song of choice mixed and mastered by Lost Monkey for 3 years (worthUS$200).
The Third Prize Winner is ToRi-LyNN from the U.S.A. with her powerful rendition of “Dark Side”. She will receive a package worth US$300++ including: 1 original song from the winner’s repertoire placed in Lost Monkey Studio’s licensing catalogue for potential TV/Film placement; 1 autographed AHMIR CD OR one AHMIR t-shirt; Free-of-charge digital distribution by Horus Music for the winner’s song of choice for 3 years.
Regina Yau, Founder and President of The Pixel Project said: “TheYouTube Cover Carnival competition is one of our Music For Pixels campaign’s programmes designed to get YouTube artistes on board the cause to stop VAW. This is our first ever YouTube Cover Carnival and we are very pleased to see the level of support there is out there for the cause. 12 up-and-coming YouTube artistes from 5 countries took part in the competition to help us spread our message about stopping VAW worldwide and 4,498 people voted in our 5 finalists from which we selected the final winners. Our next YouTube Cover Carnival will be in February 2013 and we hope that the competition will continue to grow and develop into a major global online platform for up-and-coming artistes from YouTube and beyond to say NO to VAW.”
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 the portion of the song’s proceeds donated by artistes in 2012 will go towards the Celebrity Male Role Model Pixel Reveal campaign in benefit of the USA’s National Coalition Against Domestic Violence and other anti-Violence Against Women nonprofits.
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 through innovative, powerful viral campaigns across various online and virtual channels including social media. 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.
AHMIR is the #1 MOST POPULAR R&B GROUP on YouTube with over 60 million video views and comments by celebrities such as Ryan Seacrest, Ashton Kutcher, Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, Perez Hilton, Pink, and more. The group has used their success to bring awareness to several charity organizations including Lucy’s Love Bus, Haiti Relief Fund, American Red Cross, American Cancer Society, Words Matter, YMCA, Kevin Youkilis Hits for Kids, and The Pixel Project. Their cover video of Pink’s “Perfect” was named one of the top Anti-Bullying PSA’s by The Huffington Post. AHMIR is now signed to Robbins Entertainment (distributed by RED / Sony Music).
Horus Music is a 360 degree music company based in Leicester, UK, specialising in music distribution, publishing and management. They are a one stop shop for getting your music on sale in online stores and subscription services worldwide, including: iTunes, Amazon MP3, Spotify, Deezer, Nokia, Napster, eMusic, Google Music, YouTube, Vevo, Myspace Music, HMV Digital, Zvooq, Simfy, 7Digital, Rhapsody and many more. They can also provide physical distribution throughout the UK.
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.
As part of The Pixel Project‘s “Music For Pixels” campaign, we encourage artistes taking part in any “Music For Pixels” programme, be it as an Artiste of the Month or as a YouTube Cover Carnival contestant, to speak up about why they are using music to say NO to violence against women.
Today, we interview US-based group Straight To Number Six Foothill who submitted their Rock-tinged cover of Kelly Clarkson’s “Dark Side” for our Fall 2012 YouTube Cover Carnival.
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Straight to Number Six Foothill was established for the single purpose of producing this music video. Our members all have professional careers by day while the love of music keeps us actively pursuing performance dates by night. Our members are: Helena Levin (Vocals), lead vocalist for “The Six” band. Michael Luethold (Guitar / Bass), lead guitar player for the progressive rock band ‘Straight To The Moon”. Harold “Spike” Jones (Drums), drummer for the Southern California country rock band “The Foothill Billy Band”. John Torres (Guitars) producer and rhythm guitar player for “The Six” band.
1. Tell us about StraightToNumberSixFoothill and why you decided to take part in the YouTube Cover Carnival.
We were first notified of the contest by a good friend of John Torres, who is active in championing organisations that work to stop violence against women and children. She felt the contest was an opportunity for the band to “be heard” and benefit a very worthy cause. With only a week’s notice the band was hastily assembled, entering the studio without benefit of any prior rehearsals.
2. Why is ending Violence against Women important to you?
Domestic violence, sexual assault, sexual harassment, and the violence of poverty emphasised by the radical attacks on poor women and children all result from society’s attitudes toward women and efforts to “keep women in their place.” Until we, as a global society eliminate violence based on gender, we can never achieve true human equality.
3.In your opinion, how does music help in efforts to end violence against women?
Since the early ’60s, music has been at the forefront of spreading the word about gender equality. As awareness evolved, music and musicians have become more dynamic or vocal in efforts to raise awareness about violence against women. One of the best examples is Tina Turner, who suffered the violence first hand. For decades she has used her celebrity to promote awareness about violence against women.
Because of its ability to reach a worldwide audience, music delivers a message to literally billions of people who are influenced by the artiste and will subsequently be anxious to support their cause.
4. In your opinion, how can musicians help encourage people to take an interest in and step up to help stop violence against women?
Musicians have a long history of championing causes that alleviate world suffering. Whether as individual artistes or bands performing on the “Big stage”, musicians have tirelessly devote their time to causes. By providing a venue or platform from which the message can be delivered, musicians, using their popularity, will articulate the message to their fan base who are eager to listen and will participate. Provide the outlet to a musician, and they will deliver with enthusiasm.
1. How did you come to know about The Pixel Project? Tell us why you decided to take part in The Pixel Project’s “16 For 16” Digital EP.
