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Case study: Playing for Change
Playing For Change Explained from Playing For Change on Vimeo.
Project name:
Playing For Change
Project URL:
http://www.playingforchange.com/
http://www.playingforchange.org/
Primary individual, group or organization behind project:
Describe the initiative in brief:
Playing for Change is a multimedia movement created to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music. The idea for this project arose from a common belief that music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people. No matter whether people come from different geographic, political, economic, spiritual or ideological backgrounds, music has the universal power to transcend and unite the human race.
It began in March 2005 when Mark Johnson recorded a street musician named Roger Ridley playing the 1960s classic Stand By Me on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, Calif. Since then Playing for Change built a mobile recording studio and traveled all over the world to wherever the music took them, but one thing that never changed throughout the process was their commitment to create an environment for the musicians in which they could create freely and that placed no barriers between them and those who would eventually experience their music.
What were the primary goals of the initiative:
Over the course of this project, they wanted to do more than record and share this music; they wanted to create a way to give back to the musicians and their communities that had shared so much. In 2007 they created the Playing for Change Foundation, a separate 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation whose mission is to inspire and improve communities in need around the world through music. They do this by building and connecting music schools that provide hope and inspiration to communities in need, provide a safe learning environment as an alternative to the violence and despair children face, empower children to create and share their music providing a healthy outlet of their personal expression, and enable collaboration between students of their new schools and students from established music schools in the U.S. and abroad.
In addition in early 2008, the group established Timeless Media, a for-profit entity that funds and extends the work of Playing for Change. Timeless Media entered into a joint venture with the Concord Music Group with the goal to bring Play for Change’s music, videos and message to the widest possible audience.
Who is the target audience?
Musicians and Music lovers, Consumers, Media/Entertainment/Recording industry, Peace & Reconciliation communities
What were the main achievements of the initiative?
During his travels around the globe to record music in places like Santa Monica, New Orleans, New Mexico, France, Brazil, Italy, Venezuela, South Africa, Spain, Johnson produced a music video featuring over 15 musicians playing the Stand By Me song around the world and which was the lead single on a 10-song CD album entitled Songs Around the World .
The album also includes versions of Bob Marley’s “One Love” as well as big-name cameos from Bono and Keb’ Mo’. Having debuted in April 2009, the album landed among Billboard’s top 10 albums in May and has sold about 80,000 copies. The debut of the album has also led to high-profile performances for some of its singers including appearances at the Glastonbury Festival in Great Britain and the Conan O’Brien Show and a PBS documentary set to air this summer. A movie, Playing for Change Peace Through Music, will be released in Fall, 2009 and will feature more than 100 musicians with live performances of music from native Indian Reservations, to South African Townships, to performances in the Himalayan Mountains with a goal to demonstrate how music can override obstacles, change the world and help bring about peace.
The Playing for Change movement is also using its influence to build music schools in communities that are in need of inspiration and hope. They recently completed their first music school in the township of Guguletu, South Africa, where working together with local residents, they are helping to create a safe learning and sharing environment for children who will gain access to mentors and resources that were previously unavailable.
In what ways did the project use, or leverage social media to achieve its goals?
- The project used social media platforms to extend its video/music mash-up project online. More than 11 million people have watched the YouTube video of the first single.
- Online communities on Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, and Ning have helped Playing for Change reach consumers interested in learning more and supporting the program s mission to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music.
- Playing for Change also leveraged Second Life (http://playingforchange.ning.com/profiles/blogs/june-6th-concert-in-second) in June to host a concert to raise awareness and gain support for the movement and secured more than 300 people for its performance
References and links:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/karen-daltonbeninato/a-peaceful-video-for-tax_b_186992.html
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103715874
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090617/ap_en_mu/us_music_playing_for_change
http://www.bclocalnews.com/lifestyles/47399207.html
Posted in: Case studies, Non-profit, Peace Conflict & Democracy, Public interest category | Tagged: facebook, music, ning, PBS, share, youtube
