Critically acclaimed singer/songwriter Michael Franti and his band Spearhead are premiering the video for their new single “The Flower” (feat. Victoria Canal) with a screening at the End Gun Vioence Together Rally at the TOMS headquarters in Los Angeles today; watch/share the video at http://smarturl.it/MFTheFlowerVideo. The video highlights a number of Everytown Survivor Network members and other gun violence survivors from mass shootings including Marjory Stoneman Douglas, Pulse Nightclub in Orlando and the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas, as well as daily acts of gun violence in cities across America, and focuses on the power of healing and each person's ability to create their own positive change.
The video for “The Flower” (feat. Victoria Canal) was filmed with the support of Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit organization which advocates for commonsense solutions to end gun violence. “Nearly three years ago, our beloved son Jerry was shot and killed while celebrating with friends at Pulse nightclub in Orlando,” explain Everytown Survivor Network members Maria and Fred Wright. “Since then, we have dedicated our lives to honoring our son’s legacy of kindness by joining the fight for gun safety.” The Wrights go on to add, “We should all be free from gun violence, whether dancing at a nightclub, going to school, or on our city streets. Together, we can help keep our families safe from gun violence.”
“The Flower” (feat. Victoria Canal) comes in anticipation of Franti’s upcoming new album, Stay Human Vol. II, out via Thirty Tigers on January 25. Billboard previously premiered the video for the lead single “Just To Say I Love You” at https://bit.ly/2QujiNb. Pre-orders of the album come with instant downloads of the album tracks “Just To Say I Love You,” “Stay Human 2,” “The Flower” (feat. Victoria Canal) and “Nobody Cries Alone” and are available at https://ffm.to/stayhumanvol2.
The writing on Stay Human Vol. II—which is co-produced by Franti alongside Ben Simonetti (Zac Brown Band, Shemekia Copeland, Blake Shelton), Niko Moon (Zac Brown Band), Kevin Bard (Fitz & The Tantrums) and others—was heavily influenced by Franti’s work on his new award-winning self-directed documentary, Stay Human. He explains, “I’ve traveled the globe making music and throughout the years I’ve always hoped that it could inspire small steps towards making the world a better place. Struggling with the challenges of the world I began filming my new documentary, Stay Human, telling the stories of heroic everyday people who helped me to discover more deeply what it means to be and STAY HUMAN.”
Franti will make a pair of special intimate appearances at documentary screenings at O.P. Rockwell in Park City, UT on January 24 and the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles on February 7. The screenings will feature an introduction by and Q&A with Franti, as well as an acoustic performance by Franti accompanied by Carl Young (bass, vocals) and Victoria Canal (keys, vocals). Watch/share the trailer for Stay Human at https://youtu.be/NaQu7n4NA6s. In addition to the upcoming screenings, Franti will return to his hometown of San Francisco for a pair of record release shows at The Fillmore on February 8 & 9. See below for a complete list of dates.
Stay Human has won an array of awards while on the festival circuit, including the RWJ Barnabas Health Award at the 2018 Asbury Park Music & Film Festival, the Audience Award at the 2018 Nashville Film Festival, the Audience Award and the Voice for Humanity Award at the 2018 ILLUMINATE Film Festival and the Soul in Cinema Award at the 2018 Maui Film Festival. Stay Human is set for its on demand and digital release January 25 via Cinedigm, and the film will be available on DVD and Blu-ray this spring.
Franti began writing music as a way to process both the political landscape of the late 1980s and the unique sounds and ideas of his Bay Area upbringing. In 1994, Franti formed Michael Franti & Spearhead. Touring with his band, Franti continued to notice inequality and injustice both at home and abroad. The band released their seminal Stay Human album in 2000, reflecting on the unjust nature of the death penalty among other themes, to make sense of our common humanity in juxtaposition to near constant violations of human rights.
Franti released his first self-directed documentary, I Know I’m Not Alone, in 2005 to widespread critical acclaim. The film depicts his mission for peace in the Middle East, with a focus on the human cost of war. Franti visited war zones in Iraq, Israel and Palestine again finding common connection, playing music to both soldiers and civilians regardless of affiliation.
Michael Franti & Spearhead continue to foster the community both on and off stage and with Michael and his wife Sara’s foundation Do It For The Love, a wish granting nonprofit that brings those with life threatening illnesses, veterans and children with severe challenges to concerts. His recent musical projects have included the Billboard #1 single “The Sound of Sunshine” (2010) and full-length releases All the People (2013) and SOULROCKER (2016), which topped the Billboard rock album charts at #4 and #5, respectively.
STAY HUMAN VOL. II
1. Little Things
2. Just To Say I Love You
3. The Flower (feat. Victoria Canal)
4. Only Thing Missing Was You 2 (feat. HIRIE)
5. Stay Human 2
6. Summertime Won’t Last Long
7. This World Is So F*cked Up (But I Ain’t Ever Giving Up On It)
8. You’re Number One
9. Enjoy Every Second (feat. AGodess)
10. Nobody Cries Alone
11. Extraordinary
12. When The Sun Begins To Shine
13. Show Me Your Peace Sign
14. Take Me Alive
MICHAEL FRANTI & SPEARHEAD LIVE
January 23—Park City, UT—O.P. Rockwell*
January 24—Park City, UT—O.P. Rockwell†
February 7—Los Angeles, CA—El Rey Theatre†
February 8—San Francisco, CA—The Fillmore (SOLD OUT)
February 9—San Francisco, CA—The Fillmore (SOLD OUT)
June 7—Denver, CO—Red Rocks Amphitheatre
* Acoustic performance only
† Stay Human film screening featuring a Q&A and acoustic performance by Michael Franti
