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.” Continue reading →
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 UK-based YouTube artiste Jess Greenbergwho submitted her acoustic cover of Kelly Clarkson’s “Dark Side” for our Fall 2012 YouTube Cover Carnival.
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Jess Greenberg has been playing the guitar for around seven years, but has sung and loved music for as long as she can remember. She has always really enjoyed performing, which led her to share some videos on YouTube. Now having been invited to take part in the Cover Carnival, she is grateful for the opportunity to use something she loves to be part of such a great cause.
1. Tell us about yourself – Why did you start sharing your music on YouTube and why you decided to take part in the YouTube Cover Carnival.
I’ve always loved playing the guitar and singing, and I’ve always enjoyed performing. I think I started sharing videos on YouTube because I liked the idea of being heard by people I didn’t know. I wanted to see what people thought of me and try to improve as a musician.
I wanted to take part in the Cover Carnival because it was an opportunity to be part of something new for me, and to be part of such an important cause.
2. Why is ending Violence Against Women important to you?
Going to a girls’ school, the importance of the rights and empowerment of women has been a major subject for me. Violence against women is a terrible abuse of human rights and it shocks me that it is still such a prevalent issue and is affecting so many women even in our current day and age. I’m honored to have the opportunity to be part of such a brilliant cause.
3. In your opinion, how does music help in efforts to end violence against women?
For me, music is way of expressing yourself. Music can help to convey the message to end violence against women, bring together peoples’ emotions and raise awareness.
4. In your opinion, how can musicians help encourage people to take an interest in and step up to help stop violence against women?
There are so many musician that I look up to, as do millions of people around the world. Musicians can help by using their platform to reach the people that listen to their music and convey important messages such as ending violence against women.
From Bob Dylan protesting for peace to Bruce Springsteen railing against Wall Street, music has always been a powerful medium for raising public awareness about the important issues of the day. Indeed, music is the original viral messaging tool as songs were one of the main ways of keeping cultural and political messages alive and thriving in communities through the generations.
Music is often able to say what we cannot directly raise in polite conversation and somehow makes taboo topics more palatable for many communities and cultures. Often, music serves as a potent force for introducing ideas that catalyse change and making sure they stay and blossom in our minds using catchy rhymes, irresistible hooks and toe-tapping rhythm. An excellent example is Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” which champions the LGBT cause by wrapping the message about accepting people regardless of gender or sexual orientation within a hummable tune and sing-along lyrics.
Today, the power of music to tell stories and communicate powerful messages has been greatly enhanced by radio, film and television. With the coming of the Internet and social networking sites such as YouTube, Vimeo and MySpace, the ability of music to effect change has been further amplified as anyone with an instrument, some musical talent and a webcam recorder can record themselves on their laptop and upload their songs for the world to hear.
For the cause to end violence against women and other difficult human rights issues, music and musicians are a crucial part of giving the cause a voice that will be heard. This is because, more often than not, it is difficult to get people talking about it but a song may be just the positive trigger needed to get the conversation going.
Whether you are a musician or a music fan or an activist who loves music, here are 5 ways you can use music to help propel the cause to end violence against women and other humanitarian issues:
Musical Activism Idea 1: Get Songwriting! If you are a songwriter, take up the challenge of writing songs that talk about violence against women and other human rights issues and that gives a voice to survivors of violence and abuse. And it needn’t be all doom and gloom – some of the most well-known songs out there such as “Man in the Mirror” and “Big Yellow Taxi” prove that songs about social justice issues can be as catchy as any other song.
Musical Activism Idea 2:YouTube It! Whether you are a budding or seasoned musician, get on YouTube to perform your songs for social change… or select songs about social justice to cover. With low-cost or free sound recording and video editing programmes easily available now, there is no excuse not to get online and get music vlogging!
Musical Activism Idea 3: Get The Competition Going! If you are a nonprofit, consider running a music competition requiring contestants to also carry your message of social change in their music as part of their participation. This can be a YouTube competition such as The Pixel Project’s YouTube Cover Carnival contest or a songwriting competition or even a live performance competition a la The Voice.
Musical Activism Idea 4: Soundtrack Your Campaign! Whether you are a grassroots group, an activist or a nonprofit, make music an integral part of your campaign be it using appropriate songs to buoy up spirits during your protest march, creating an anthem for your cause or including selling music downloads as part of your fundraising activities.
Musical Activism Idea 5: Go live! From Band Aid to Live 8 to Global Freedom Concerts, concerts have been a staple for raising awareness and fundraising for causes ranging from famine in Africa to Human Trafficking. So organise local musicians to hold concerts or short performances to help raise funds and awareness for your cause.
Excited to begin using music to enhance your efforts to stop violence against women? Why not start by taking part in The Pixel Project’s Fall 2012 YouTube Cover Carnival competition featuring Kelly Clarkson’s “Dark Side” to say NO to violence against women while getting a chance to win the Grand Prize Package which includes free song production, free digital distribution and being featured on the YouTube homepage of YouTube’s #1 R&B group, AHMIR.
The competition ends at 9PM EST on 31 August 2012.
When we created the Music For Pixels campaign, we started by asking ourselves:
What if YouTube artistes and YouTube music fans got together to make the world a better place for women and girls worldwide?”
We genuinely had no idea what sort of response we would get from survivors, supporters, fellow anti-Violence Against Women nonprofits and activists, and the general public.
All we knew is that music would be a very powerful way to amplify the message we wanted to send out and we hoped that it would also prove to be an equally powerful way for the message to reach into the hearts and minds of the vast global online community out there.
And so together with our first ever Music For Pixels artiste, YouTube’s #1 R&B group, AHMIR, we released the music video PSA of their cover of ‘The Rose’ with fingers crossed and breath held…
More importantly, we were proven right as the comments section under the video exploded and survivors, supporters and AHMIR fans alike posted their thoughts about the video.
Here is a selection of the most striking comments from survivors inspired to speak up and share their stories*:
* Please note that we have reproduced these quotes in their authentic entirety to preserve the voice of the commentator.
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“As a survivor of domestic violence, thanks for the support Ahmir. Beautiful song, brought tears to my eyes.” – Swoon17
“This song touched me. I am the 1 of 5 victims. At age 10, I was raped 5 times by the same guy.. I didn’t know what was gong on because I cracked my head open. At age 18, every memory came to me like a speeding bullet… threatened to kill me if I said anything… 15 years later I’m able and blessed to share and to save a life.. please don’t hesitate to say something… I’m very glad that you guys sung a beautiful song that reaches out to people, and someone like me and anyone else who’s been through it, can reach out and speak without being afraid of anything and can save a life. Thank you guys so much! Much love and respect. God Bless you guys with such a beautiful talent.” – lilsnowbunny23
“This really touches me. when I was 11 a guy was pressuring me to do things with him I didn’t want to do. I kept saying no and he beat me every time, even coming up behind me while I was leaving and choking me with a shoe lace. I have a scar on the side of my neck because of the burn from shaking my head back and forth, trying to get him off of me. No one can touch my face because of him and it hurts because the guy I’m with now is trying to help me recover when it’s just way too hard for me.” – ForeverLove6354
“I love anything Ahmir does and to do a song for this cause makes me love them even more. Like most of you, I too was a victim of rape at a young age and I didn’t recover until I was older. After recovery, I helped other young girls who were also victims, they just needed someone to trust, talk to, and to be there for them. After I was brutally raped I didn’t have anyone so I tried to take my life multiple times, luckily I didn’t succeed. The word needs to be put out so thanks guys for helping!” – hbarden18
“Thank you for raising funds and awareness for this cause. I am a domestic violence survivor. Without the programs available at the time of my need, my family and I wouldn’t be here. More money and awareness is needed. The effects of this life experience not only affect the wife, it affects the children with lifelong psychological effects for all, including the husband. Thank you AHMIR for using your voices to help raise awareness for the voiceless women and children of domestic violence.” – AJsFight4Life
“I love this!!! My mother was a victim at one point in her life. Thanks so much!!! Keep singing!! Love you guys.” – saxtaylor96
“This is amazing. <3 Been abused by my parents and ex boyfriends. Physical and emotional. Been through depression. But I’m moving on now – therapy & an amazing boyfriend. And I guess.. Even though YouTube is full of strangers, this kinda music makes me able to share.”– Bab3girlX
“BEAUTIFUL!! It’s awsome you guys are trying to make a different!! Wish I had the courage to do something.. my brother abused me for four years and my parents never believed me.. now I just live in silent pain and being afraid to get a boyfriend.. It’s such a blessing to know you guys are doing everything you can to stop that.”– kiplasy
Thousands of viewers of the music video PSA of The Rose will have seen the portraits of 6 survivors of violence against women who courageously and generously allowed us to include their picture in the video, knowing that a global audience will see their faces and note their signs that they are survivors and wonder about the stories behind their hard-won smiles. Our sixth and final story features Elizabeth Warfield Smith, a survivor of rape and stalking who currently volunteers on The Pixel Project’s Twitter Tag Team.
I have been a victim of both rape and stalking as a teenager. I was also a victim of a family that chose not to believe me. I chose to have my photo in Ahmir’s music video PSA of “The Rose” to let every woman out there know that there is a way to smile, thrive, and love again.
Music is a language that everyone understands, though it may impact us differently as individuals. I also would like people to know that after the healing you can take one more step to reach out and help other women that need your hand or shoulder or hug, either virtually or in person. I am truly blessed to be able to show every one that watches the video that love is possible and I hope you can see that love in my eyes and smile. The Pixel Project is here for you and the young men of AHMIR prove that there are many others that are willing to help you in any way possible. Make love your first proiority and everything will fall into place.
When AHMIR, the Number 1 R&B group on YouTube, offered to cover ‘The Rose’ for our Music For Pixels campaign, we were delighted because it is a classic song that beautifully articulates the themes of love, hope, courage and the strength to survive. These are themes that are central to many a survivor’s journey to rebuilding and thriving after the violence.
The closing verse in particular says what speaks to many a survivor’s heart and experience:
When the night has been too lonely And the road has been too long And you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong Just remember in the winter Far beneath the bitter snow Lies the seed That with the sun’s love, in the spring Becomes the rose
Amanda McBroom wrote ‘The Rose’ in 1977 as her answer to the question: “What do you think love is?”. She said:
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.
