AS SEEN ON “SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE” AND THE U.S. OPEN’S OPENING CEREMONY THIS YEAR, THE UKRAINIAN CHORUS DUMKA OF NEW YORK RECORDS SPECIAL SONG TO UNITE THE WORLD
GRAMMY® NOMINATED BRICKMAN TO FEATURE SPECIAL SONG ON HIS UPCOMING “A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS TOUR”
New Track Available Now with Accompanying Music Video
Listen Here
New York, NY (October 6, 2022)—With the holidays approaching, the Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York, featured on Saturday Night Live and this year’s U.S. Open opening ceremony, joins music artists Jim Brickman, Haley & Michaels and Mat & Savanna Shaw to present “Peace Joy Love,” a special song with an inspiring message of hope through the continuing war-torn events in Ukraine. Available now with an accompanying music video, all proceeds from downloads and streams of the single are being donated to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s UNITED24 fundraising platform to aid the rebuilding of the country’s damaged infrastructure. Watch the video HERE.
Two-time GRAMMY®-nominated Jim Brickman will feature the special song during his upcoming “A Very Merry Christmas Tour” (and with Mat & Savanna Shaw on selected dates) – for his annual holiday tour celebrating music, love and family, which runs from Nov. 27-Dec. 31. Recorded with country pop hit-making husband-wife pair Haley & Michaels, #1 iTunes pop charting father-daughter musical duo Mat & Savanna Shaw and The Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York Peace Joy Love,” is currently #33 on Mediabase (AC).
Inspired by Zelenskyy’s speech at the 2022 Grammys, calling musicians to “fill the silence with music,” the acclaimed artists decided to collaborate for this special project and use their voices to show support for the people of Ukraine. They filmed the music video in New York at the historic surroundings of The Ukrainian Institute of America, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the art, music and literature of Ukraine; and features all of the artists involved, bringing together more than 50 singers and musicians including members of the Ukrainian Children’s Choir Moloda Dumka.
Ryan Michaels of Haley & Michaels, who also produced the project, says, “It’s important to us as artists and songwriters to use our voice and platform to do everything we can and speak up against injustice. It has been an incredible honor to work with Vasyl [Hrechynsky], the Ukrainian Chorus Dumka, and so many talented artists.”
Says Ukrainian Chorus Dumka NY’s acclaimed musical director, Vasyl Hrechynsky, whose sweeping choral arrangement lifts the song: “The lyrics are so timely, given that Ukraine is fighting a war since Russia’s invasion. This is an especially difficult time because Ukraine is the native country of the majority of the members of the chorus. I hope and pray that the lives of the Ukrainian people will once again be filled with peace, joy and love.”
To purchase tickets for Jim Brickman’s “A Very Merry Christmas Tour” please visit:
https://www.jimbrickman.com/tour/.
JIM BRICKMAN’S “A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS TOUR”:
*denotes performances featuring Mat & Savanna Shaw
Nov 27 – Bank of America Performing Arts Center – Thousand Oaks, CA*
Nov 29 – Yoshi’s – Oakland, CA
Nov 30 – Hult Center for the Performing Arts – Eugene, OR
Dec 1 – Newmark Theatre – Portland, OR*
Dec 2 – Egyptian Theatre – Boise, ID*
Dec 3 – Bing Crosby Theater – Spokane, WA*
Dec 4 – Benaroya Hall – Seattle, WA*
Dec 5 – Rialto Theater Center – Loveland, CO
Dec 6 – Paramount Theatre – Denver, CO*
Dec 8 – Coleman Theatre – Miami, OK
Dec 9 – The Arts Center – Council Bluffs, IA
Dec 10 – Orpheum Theatre – Wichita, KS*
Dec 11 – Husby Performing Arts Center – Sioux Falls, SD*
Dec 13 – State Theatre Kalamazoo – Kalamazoo, MI*
Dec 14 – Valentine Theatre – Toledo, OH*
Dec 15 – RBTL Auditorium Theatre– Rochester, NY*
Dec 16 – Carnegie Library of Homestead Music Hall – Pittsburgh, PA
Dec 17-18 – Hannah Theatre – Cleveland, OH
Dec 19 – Sandler Center for the Performing Arts – Virginia Beach, VA
Dec 20 – Fletcher Opera House – Raleigh, NC
Dec 21 – City Winery – Atlanta, GA
Dec 22 – Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall – Sarasota, FL
Dec 27 – Dr Phillips Center for the Performing Arts – Orlando, FL
Dec 28 – The Tobin Center – San Antonio, TX
Dec 29-31 – Musical Instrument Museum – Phoenix, AZ
ABOUT JIM BRICKMAN:
Jim Brickman’s distinctive piano style and captivating live performances, have revolutionized the popularity of instrumental music, making him a driving force behind modern American music. The hit-making songwriter is the best-selling solo pianist of our time, earning 22 Number One albums and 32 Top 20 Radio Singles. He’s garnered two Grammy nominations, Gospel Music’s Dove Award, two SESAC Songwriter of the Year Awards, a Canadian Country Music Award, and is a member of Pandora’s “2 Billion Streams” Club.
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Brickman is one of pop-music’s most fascinating success stories. He jumped from a career as a jingle writer of famous tunes for advertising, to reviving the romantic standard of the popular song. His first album release was 1995’s “No Words,” and he’s gone on to sell ten million albums worldwide.
His star-studded vocal collaborations have featured artists like Lady A, Carly Simon, Martina McBride, Michael W. Smith, Herb Alpert, Michael Bolton, Donny Osmond, Kenny Rogers, Olivia Newton-John, Johnny Mathis, Kenny Loggins, and Five For Fighting.
He’s written three best-selling books, starred in five TV concert specials, and is in the 22nd season of hosting the popular syndicated radio show: “The Jim Brickman Show.”
Hope, faith and peace are truly at the heart of Jim Brickman’s passionate songwriting. “I write music to be shared — to soothe, to inspire, to celebrate, to love. To me, music is the pure and simple soundtrack to life’s most memorable moments.”
Official site | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube
ABOUT THE UKRAINIAN CHORUS DUMKA OF NEW YORK:
For 70 years, the Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York has enriched the cultural and spiritual life of the Ukrainian diaspora while also generating enthusiasm in the American and European public, including through a recent performance of ‘Prayer For Ukraine’, which opened an episode of Saturday Night Live.
With a wide repertoire, including Ukrainian folk, classical and sacred music, the chorus has performed at Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Town Hall, Madison Square Garden, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York, the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., the PNC Bank Arts Center in New Jersey, as well as concert halls of many European capitals, among them, the Royal Albert Hall in London.
In 1990, the Chorus made a successful concert tour of England, Austria, Germany, France and Ukraine where it was received with great enthusiasm in Kyiv, Lviv, Poltava, and Kaniv. The first musical director of the Chorus was L. Krushelnycky. His work was continued by O. Mykytiuk, R. Stepaniak, I. Zukowsky, I. Zadorozny, I. Sonevycky, A. Bernyk and S. Komirny. Since 1991 “Dumka” has performed under the direction of Vasyl Hrechynsky.
The Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York consists of approximately 50-60 members, and performs at various venues throughout the year.
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ABOUT HALEY & MICHAELS:
Named one of Rolling Stone’s “Artists You Need to Know”, Haley & Michaels are known for their strong, blended vocal harmonies and their relatable lyrics. Capturing the vision of both Shannon Haley and Ryan Michaels, they sharpen a fresh, arena-size sound and embody what it means to be a pure duo on stage and off.
Following their emergence with the breakout single ‘Giving It All (To You)’, the pair has generated over 50 million online streams in addition to landing on marquee Spotify and Apple Music playlists. They have appeared three times on NBC’s “TODAY”, earning a fan in Hoda Kotb, and have had multiple top 10 singles on Sirius XM.
After signing to Sony Music Publishing, they released their first full-length studio album, titled Hail Mary. Following the title track’s original debut in the Netflix film Walk. Ride. Rodeo, the song was picked up by the duo’s hometown San Francisco 49ers with a music video directed and produced by the team, leading to a Monday Night Football halftime performance in October at Levi’s Stadium and kicking off a series of performances within the NFL.
They are passionate about using their platform and their music to advocate for social justice and causes they believe in, collaborating with Me Too Movement Founder, Tarana Burke on their song ‘Me Too’.
The duo finished 2019 charting on Billboard and they are on the rise with recent features in TIME, The New York Times, Washington Post and USA Today. They are currently working on their sophomore album, which will include multiple special collaborations, including ‘Peace, Joy, Love’.
Official site | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube
ABOUT MAT AND SAVANNA SHAW:
Mat and Savanna Shaw are a father-daughter duo from Utah that rose to prominence during the COVID-19 quarantine. Normally a shy and private teenager, Savanna asked her dad to join her in singing “The Prayer” and uploaded it to social media.
After that video went viral, Mat and Savanna continued releasing duets on social media and streaming platforms, with singles charting in both the US and UK. They quickly garnered a worldwide following, now resulting in over 600,000 YouTube subscribers. In October of 2020, their first album “Picture This” debuted at #1 on the iTunes Pop Chart and #1 on multiple Billboard charts. They have now released a total of four albums, all of which have debuted at the top of iTunes, Amazon, and Billboard charts worldwide. The New York Times said they “harmonize into billowy bliss.” Kelly Clarkson called them “incredibly gifted,” and Good Morning America said “this father daughter duo’s music is bringing hope.”
Mat and Savanna’s uplifting song choices and harmonies have inspired people the world over. They have a passion for using music for good – often supporting charities, good causes, and providing inspiration with their performances. Their goal and mission is to share hope and spread joy through music.
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