Tuesday July 22, 2008
MICHAEL FRANTI AND SPEARHEAD MAKE STOPS IN JAPAN, CANADA, EUROPE AND US IN ANTICIPATION OF RELEASE OF ALL REBEL ROCKERS SEPT 9
I Know I’m Not Alone Opens Historic Documentary Film Festival in Dubai
July was full of firsts for Michael Franti and his band Spearhead. On the 4th of July weekend, Franti and Spearhead played the inaugural Rothbury Festival in Michigan, a greened-out festival run in large part by volunteers and devoted to education and activism as much as a great live music experience. While he was there, Franti lead 500 enthusiastic yoga devotees in an afternoon of music and movement before his set that evening.
July also found Franti’s award-winning documentary I Know I’m Not Alone at the first documentary film festival in Dubai, “Documentary Voices: Pulling Focus.” Featuring 20 filmmakers from the Arab countries, US and Iran, the festival opened with Franti’s 2005 film about his experiences in the war-ravaged countries of Iraq, Israel and Palestine, and was attended by the Crown Prince of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
The remainder of the summer and well into the fall will find Franti and Spearhead traveling around the world, playing such festivals at the Fuji Rock festival in Japan, Pukkelpop in Belgium and Franti’s own Power to the Peaceful festival which draws 50,000+ people each year to Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
All Rebel Rockers, Michael Franti and Spearhead’s upcoming release, hits stores on September 9th. Produced by superstar production team Sly and Robbie (No Doubt, Alicia Keys, Sean Paul), with additional production from Matt Wallace (Maroon 5, Faith No More) on a number of tracks, All Rebel Rockers is arguably the grooviest, most danceable protest record ever. Billboard magazine writes “it is not possible for Michael Franti to put aside, even briefly, the stay-positive political messages in his music, but on All Rebel Rockers, he delivers them with a club-approved, dub-infused soul heavily dipped in the record’s birthplace of Kingston Jamaica.”
Catch Michael Franti and Spearhead on tour:
Thu Jul 24 - Detroit Lakes, MN - 10,000 LAKES FESTIVAL
Sun Jul 27 - Niigata, JPN - FUJI ROCK FEST - Field of Heaven
Fri Aug 08 - Jersey City, NJ - ALL POINTS WEST
Sat Aug 09 - Edmonton, AB - EDMONTON FOLK FESTIVAL
Sun Aug 10 - Regina, SK - REGINA FOLK FESTIVAL
Thu Aug 14 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - PARADISO
Fri Aug 15 - Hasselt, - Belgium - PUKKELPOP
Sat Aug 16 - Chelmsford, United Kingdom - Hylands Park - V FESTIVAL
Sun Aug 17 - Staffordshire, United Kingdom - Weston Park - V FESTIVAL
Tue Aug 19 - Sheffield, United Kingdom - LEADMILL
Wed Aug 20 - Edinburgh, Scotland - LIQUID ROOM
Thu Aug 21 - London, England - KOKO
Fri Aug 22 - Cheltenhelm, United Kingdom - GREENBELT
Sun Aug 24 - Chiemsee, Germany - CHIEMSEE REGGAE Summer - Open Air
Mon Aug 25 - Berlin, Germany - KATO
Tue Aug 26 - Cologne, Germany - LUXOR
Thu Aug 28 - Eindhoven, Netherlands - EFFENAAR
Sat Aug 30 - Argyll, Scotland - CONNECT FESTIVAL
Sun Aug 31 - County Laois, Ireland - ELECTRIC PICNIC
Sat Sep 06 - San Francisco, CA - POWER TO THE PEACEFUL FESTIVAL
Fri Sep 12 - Seattle, WA - MARYMOOR AMPHITHEATER
Sat Sep 13 - Portland, OR - ROSELAND THEATER
Sun Sep 14 - Laytonville, CA - BLACK OAK RANCH - EARTHDANCE FESTIVAL
Fri Sep 19 - San Diego, CA - STREET SCENE
Sun Sep 21 - Los Angeles, CA - HOLLYWOOD BOWL
Fri Sep 26 - Santa Fe, NM - PAOLO SOLERI OUTDOOR AMPHITHEATER
Sat Sep 27 - Flagstaff, AZ - PINE MOUNTAIN AMPHITHEATER
Sun Sep 28 - Tucson, AZ - RIALTO THEATRE
Michael Franti and Spearhead Artist Page