Michael Franti and Spearhead to Perform at the Grassroots Festival
by the GrassRoots Festival
Rooted in 70s funk, roots reggae and hip-hop and driven by political activism, Michael Franti & Spearhead will be featured at the much anticipated 16th Annual Finger Lakes GrassRoots Festival of Music & Dance, held July 20-23 in Trumansburg NY. Spearhead will perform on Friday July 21st at 10:00 pm.
Politically outspoken frontman Michael Franti captures the ideals of the GrassRoots Festival. The event is non-profit, vehemently non-commercial, with a goal of "supporting arts, education, and the fight against AIDS" while celebrating cultural diversity through music. Franti's political messages include a staunch anti-death penalty stance, fierce concerns about the prison-industrial complex, and world peace and poverty issues.
"My role is as a storyteller and a songwriter," says Franti. "I'm somebody who is trying to keep the spirits of other people up, despite all the chaos and fear around us." After several years with critical darling The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, Michael Franti released an album as a solo artist, which was praised for his insightful raps and Public Enemy-influenced beats. After disappearing for two years, Franti resurfaced in 1994 with Spearhead, a band heavily driven by funk, reggae and hip-hop; their debut album Home was followed in 1997 by Chocolate Supa Highway. Spearhead's upcoming album, Yell Fire, with an accompanying DVD (a documentary by Franti about the Iraq War, with footage shot by him in the Middle East), is to be released on July 25 and is already being lauded as one of the best albums of 2006.
Along with Spearhead, over 60 other groups will perform on four stages during the four day event, including host band, Americana roots rockers Donna the Buffalo, hit country singer John Anderson, African music legend Thomas Mapfumo & Blacks Unlimited, Rajasthani gypsy-Indian fusion band Musafir, Honduran Garifuna singer Aurelio Martinez, Irish supergroup Cherish the Ladies, Grammy-winning country singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale, polyethnic percussion and visual performance ensemble Cyro Baptista & Beat The Donkey, and many more. Whether you come for the day or stay for the weekend, one will see that GrassRoots is a truly unique and uplifting experience for the whole family to enjoy.
Rooted in 70s funk, roots reggae and hip-hop and driven by political activism, Michael Franti & Spearhead will be featured at the much anticipated 16th Annual Finger Lakes GrassRoots Festival of Music & Dance, held July 20-23 in Trumansburg NY. Spearhead will perform on Friday July 21st at 10:00 pm.
Politically outspoken frontman Michael Franti captures the ideals of the GrassRoots Festival. The event is non-profit, vehemently non-commercial, with a goal of "supporting arts, education, and the fight against AIDS" while celebrating cultural diversity through music. Franti's political messages include a staunch anti-death penalty stance, fierce concerns about the prison-industrial complex, and world peace and poverty issues.
"My role is as a storyteller and a songwriter," says Franti. "I'm somebody who is trying to keep the spirits of other people up, despite all the chaos and fear around us." After several years with critical darling The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, Michael Franti released an album as a solo artist, which was praised for his insightful raps and Public Enemy-influenced beats. After disappearing for two years, Franti resurfaced in 1994 with Spearhead, a band heavily driven by funk, reggae and hip-hop; their debut album Home was followed in 1997 by Chocolate Supa Highway. Spearhead's upcoming album, Yell Fire, with an accompanying DVD (a documentary by Franti about the Iraq War, with footage shot by him in the Middle East), is to be released on July 25 and is already being lauded as one of the best albums of 2006.
Along with Spearhead, over 60 other groups will perform on four stages during the four day event, including host band, Americana roots rockers Donna the Buffalo, hit country singer John Anderson, African music legend Thomas Mapfumo & Blacks Unlimited, Rajasthani gypsy-Indian fusion band Musafir, Honduran Garifuna singer Aurelio Martinez, Irish supergroup Cherish the Ladies, Grammy-winning country singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale, polyethnic percussion and visual performance ensemble Cyro Baptista & Beat The Donkey, and many more. Whether you come for the day or stay for the weekend, one will see that GrassRoots is a truly unique and uplifting experience for the whole family to enjoy.
© GrassRoots Festival 1996-2006
posted by Swallowtail at 10:11
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