NEW YORK (CelebrityAccess) – The James Brown Estate, Primary Wave Music, and the Center For Common Ground announce their exciting new partnership. The partnership will see the estate and voting organization partner on several initiatives to help mobilize Black voters ahead of November’s Election Day. The Center for Common Ground is a non-partisan voting rights organization dedicated to empowering Black voters in Southern and Southeastern states facing voter suppression tactics. Recognizing that Brown was not only known for his groundbreaking contributions to music but also for being a staunch advocate of social issues, including education and voting rights, this partnership will celebrate and honor his lifelong commitment to encouraging Black political participation.
Across his incomparable 5 decade plus year career in music, Brown used his platform to encourage the Black community to exercise their right to vote and to participate actively in the political process. From his work during the Civil Rights era to his songs with political messages to his public appearances and speeches, Brown never missed an opportunity to share with his community the importance of education and protecting voting rights. Together with the James Brown Estate, OBEY, and Primary Wave, the Center for Common Ground will continue mobilizing and empowering Black voters despite ongoing efforts to suppress their voices.
The partnership with the Center For Common Ground will rally around Brown’s song “We Got To Change.” It will include a mailing of 40,000 postcards featuring a custom James Brown design by Shepard Fairey and OBEY, a social media campaign of collaboration posts going live weekly with election information in the states the Center for Common Ground works which include Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Texas & Arizona, and additional initiatives to be announced soon that will reach more voters with details they need to cast a ballot this fall. In addition, Fairey and his team at OBEY have confirmed a run of apparel and fine art screen prints that will be available on September 10, featuring the new art of James Brown by Shepard Fairey and will be donating a portion of the proceeds to go to the Center For Common Ground. The apparel can be found at obeyclothing.com, and the prints will be for sale at obeygiant.com.
“Don’t terrorize. Organize. Don’t burn. Give kids a chance to learn.” James Brown
