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Disney, ESPN’s The Undefeated and Color Of Change Launch Partnership with New EP I Can’t Breathe/Music for the Movement

For Immediate Release

October 16, 2020 

 

Disney, ESPN’s The Undefeated and Color Of Change Launch Partnership with New EP I Can’t Breathe/Music for the Movement

 

New York, NY — In their latest partnership, Color Of Change, Disney Music Group and ESPN’s The Undefeated announce a new project that examines the racial and police accountability protests taking place across the nation through music and art, I Can’t Breathe/Music for the Movement Vol. 1. The project includes an EP that reimagines historically significant songs by and for Black America with contemporary artists and producers.

 

“No social movement has ever progressed without powerful music to energize it. This kind of culture work is critical at this moment,” said Rashad Robinson, President of Color Of Change. “With only weeks left until election day, it’s important that we continue to inspire people and move them to work together and take strategic action. This is about harnessing our collective voices and our power to build a more human, less hostile world for Black people and everyone in our society.”

 

The new EP features four songs and the cover art for each track was created by several high profile and rising Black artists:

  • Pray Momma Don’t Cry (original song) by Rapsody feat. Bilal; produced by 9th Wonder; cover art by NUWARHOL
  • People Get Ready (cover) by Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, Alex Isley; produced by Terrace Martin & Robert Glasper; cover art by Al-Baseer
  • Strange Fruit (cover) by Jensen McRae; produced by Rahki; cover art by Blue the Great
  • Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) (cover) by Keedron Bryant; produced by Dem Jointz; cover art by Laurence “Sketch” Cheatham

 

“For The Undefeated, it was so important for us to bring the appropriate platform and medium to this Moment—to this Movement. And what is, really, is more powerful of a message than Black Music?” said Raina Kelley Managing Editor of ESPN The Undefeated. “What better way to speak to our Audience? So many of whom are about to vote in a monumentally consequential election following a summer of unprecedented protest, while simultaneously facing a pandemic and economic downturn that has disproportionately impacted people of color.  This EP is not only our first collaboration with Disney Music Group but the biggest way we could think of to find the air and just sing.” 

 

In addition to the EP release, the project includes a new episode from Color Of Change’s #TellBlackStories podcast featuring conversations with the artists, producers and with  leaders from The Undefeated and Disney. The songs will also be used in concept videos lifting up racial justice issues important to Black voters. They will be released later this month.

 

You can listen and download I Can’t Breathe/Music for the Movement EP now on Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal and more.

 

The #TellBlackStories podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher. 

 

About #TellBlackStories: #TellBlackStories is part of Color Of Change’s Hollywood and culture change work to ensure authentic, empathetic, and human portrayals of Black people across the media landscape. The 2020 webby award-winning podcast brings together storytellers, changemakers and celebrities to talk about the issues that affect Black communities the most. We dive into everything from what it’s like to be a Black writer in an all white writer’s room to the issues that deserve centerstage this election year: voting rights, criminal justice reform, fighting white nationalism. We focus on the systems and behaviors that unfairly hold Black people back and champion solutions to move us all forward.

 

About Color Of Change: Color Of Change is the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. We help people respond effectively to injustice in the world around us, design campaigns powerful enough to end practices that unfairly hold Black people back and champion solutions that move us all forward. As a national online force driven by 7 million members, we move decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America.

 

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