UNICEF launch of global drive held in New York City.
By Sujeet Rajan
NEW YORK: Actress Priyanka Chopra and singer Sunidhi Chauhan are the two UNICEF ambassadors from India who are part of a unique music campaign globally to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The campaign #IMAGINE will culminate at the end of the year in a multi-lingual version of John Lennon’s classic haunting appeal to peace ‘Imagine’, sung in part by celebrities, singers, and UNICEF ambassadors like Chopra and Chauhan, from around the world, interspersed with selected voices of people globally who send their version of the song. The final version would be remixed by DJ David Guetta. A separate music video will also be launched.
This project by UNICEF is likely to be world’s largest ever global effort at choir rendition of one song, spanning more than a month. The funds raised will go towards supporting the organization’s work in 190 countries around the world.
The launch of the campaign this past Friday in New York City featured some celebrity heavyweights, including Hugh Jackman, Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono, and ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus. Performances at the event included from Grammy Award winner Angélique Kidjo, Brazilian singer Daniela Mercury, Swedish-Iranian pop star Laleh, cellist Trey Lee from Hong Kong, and Nigerian musician Don Jazzy.
“The #IMAGINE project gives people across the globe a chance to join a global movement for children, lending their ideas, their visions and, not least, their voices to advance the rights of every child, everywhere.” said Tony Lake, Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund, in a statement.
The #IMAGINE digital experience is available via the TouchCast app for iOS on the App Store, or at http://imagine.unicef.org
UNICEF also released an official version of Lennon’s ‘Imagine’, which features Chopra singing too, with another celebrity, a line from the song. The song features the UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon singing too, also with a choir, apart from staff members at the UN giving voice.
In an interesting publicity stunt, Chopra also released a solo redacted (thankfully) version of Lennon’s Imagine on YouTube, which is over a minute long. The video features Lennon too, and at one point has Chopra superimposing herself over Lennon.
Chopra’s lackluster rendition of the song, done in the same style of Lennon staring straight at the camera and singing in a deadpan expression, makes one thing amply clear: without the bouncy dance moves and hard pop beats on a music video which can camouflage poor singing, her voice is a nightmare for music aficionados. It comes across as flat, hoarse and without any emotional element attached with a song of this caliber.
Chopra should at least have released the video with a message upfront as to what the purpose of singing ‘Imagine’ was. Instead, we have her struggling to sing the lines efficiently, with hesitant English, total lack of range and depth.
At one point in the song, Chopra even smiles, turning her face away as in a blush. What for?! Did she think of something else singing the song? Perhaps, at her own audacity, for trying to take on a number which exposes her poor vocal skills roundly. One thing is for sure, she doesn’t understand the concept of the heartfelt song.
Maybe, Chopra is miffed she got only one line from the UNICEF video, that too sharing space with another singer, and wanted the public to hear her Nightingale rendition. Well, needless to say, it doesn’t work.
Here’s the full list of celebrity participants in #IMAGINE:
*Regina Wilson – NYFD (US)
*Angelique Kidjo – Singer (Benin)
*Nicole Scherzinger – Singer (US)
*Cody Simpson – Singer (Australia)
*Sigrid Agren – Model (France)
*Danny O’Donoghue – Singer (Ireland)
*Roarke – Singer (US)
*Idris Elba – Actor (UK)
*Francois Alexander, Jenny Bapst Boussaut, Kate Naut, Samantha Rex – Singers (France & US)
*Lance Bass – Singer (US)
*Dash Mihok – Film/TV actor (US)
*Priyanka Chopra – Actress/Singer (India)
*Suki Waterhouse – Model (UK)
*Craig David – Singer (UK)
*Zelda Williams – Actress (US)
*Joan Sebastian – Singer/Songwriter (Mexico)
*Adam Lambert – Singer (US)
*Nasri – Singer (Canada)
*Maria Gabriela de Faria – Actress/Singer (Venezuela)
*Ban Ki-Moon – UN Secretary General (South Korea)
*Professional Performing Arts School Choir Members – School Choir (NYC Public School)
*Family School Students – International Students (NYC based)
*David Guetta – Music Producer/DJ (France)
*Courtney Cox & daughter – Actress (US)
*Doni & Akai Floyd – Mother & Daughter (US)
*Mari Malek – DJ Stiletto/Activist (South Sudan)
*David Arquette – Actor (US)
*Isaiah Mustafa – Actor (US)
*Scott Foley – Actor (US)
*Sam Martin – Singer (US)
*Bianca Yuzon – Singer (The Philippines)
*Justin Bartha and baby Asa – Film/TV actor (US)
*Eric Christian Olsen – Actor (US)
*Antonella Barba – Singer (US)
*Rumer Willis – Actress (US)
*Katy Perry – Singer (US) – Perth
*Seth Green – Actor (US)
*Rebecca Da Costa – Actress/Model (Brazil)
*Butch Vig – Music Producer (US)
*Antonique Smith – Actress (US)
*will.i.am – Musician/Entrepreneur (US)
*Taye Diggs – Broadway/TV/Film actor (US)
*Patricia Arquette & daughter Harlow Jane – Actress (US)
*Ben Barnes – Actor (UK)
*Rob Kazinsky – Actor (UK)
*Tokio Hotel’s Bill Kaulitz – Singer (Germany)
*Dianna Agron – Actress/Singer (US)
*Tony Lake – Executive Director of UNICEF (US)
*Ore & Neave Segal – Sons of Edo & Ayelet Segal (US/Israel)
*Yuna Kim- Figure Skater (South Korea) – Seoul
*Eden Espinosa – Broadway Actress/Singer (US)
*Sunidhi Chauhan – Bollywood Singer (India)
*Nina Dobrev – Actress (Bulgaria)
*Julian Morris – Actor (UK)
*Poe – Singer (US)
*Sanaa Lathan – Actress (US)
*Amy Brenneman – Actress (US)
*Trevor Jackson – Singer & Actor (US).
6 Comments
Foremost, this is a difficult song to croon. But she carried the tune well, not withstanding the fact, that she is not a professional singer and the recording conditions were not as ideal as when John Lennon recorded the song. She was on the top twenty percentile of singers on the video.The opinion of the author is unfair, since he is trying to compare her to Barbara Streisand or Celine Dion. She is neither. Priyanka, is probably the most talented of Bollywood actors and talented in many areas.She has produced an album on her own. All said and done…would I pay to see her singing concert? to be fair..the answer is no. At the same token I would not pay to see Brittney Spears either!
I find it really fun how this was written by an Indian American. Before you go chatting crap about Miss World 2000, Guess Girl & one of the highest paid Bollywood actresses, you might want to check YOUR English & your grammar. It’s fine to have an opinion, but as a journalist have some self respect before you write such harsh things. You can’t exactly say she had “hesitant English” when:
1) She’s an American Indian, like yourself, & has an American accent.
2) I can’t stress enough; whether you like the song or not, it’s for a good campaign, which she’s apart of & you’re probably not.
3) & whether you like the song or not, there’s no need to bash her so harshly & shamelessly. It’s actually just sad. You probably won’t see this, but if you do; Priyanka’s bae.
You really need to learn English grammar. Your writing is atrocious and you should be ashamed of posting such trash. By the way, nice job talking about a YouTube video without providing a link or embedding it.
terrible article which reeks of hatred. typical american BS.
Everyone in India has heard her solo version and luved it……. U should be ashamed to call yourself a journalist
Who cares about your biased opinion? People loved it and thats it. You are just another one in the long list of haters.