Rahman lends his voice to UN anthem
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Mumbai, Feb 22: Poverty has no caste or gender, but it now has a voice in the
form of music
virtuoso A R Rahman, whose English single 'Pray For Me Brother' will be the
UN's anthem for its
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) campaign.
The MDGs comprise a set of eight promises by world governments to end poverty,
hunger and
disease by 2015.
After rocking India with his 'Vande Mataram', Rahman's first English song,
released by
Universal Music, is his call to wipe poverty off the face of the earth.
"Poverty and hunger have no religion or gender and this song is to inspire
people to do a
little bit about the world. We all believe in a creator and even a prayer can
change things,"
Rahman said at the launch of 'Pray For Me Brother' and its music video here
today.
Explaining the reason for singing the song in English, Rahman said it was like
a "statement
from India". "If we have a message for the world, English is the best form of
expression," he
observed.
Music, he pointed out, had the power to change the lives of the people.
"Poverty is the root of all problems like disease and crime," he said.
'Pray For Me Brother' is the world's first music video shot in the mobile
cinemascope format to
enable suitable viewing by mobile customers.
The video was shot in black and white by Bharatbala of 'Vande Mataram' fame.
The song was
written by Blaaze and composed and sung by Rahman.
The video was launched exclusively on the Nokia N series music edition of
mobile phones.
