Anti-bullying music album ready for release

April 28th, 2014
[Press release]

During the past couple of months young people across the Nelson Tasman region have been busy writing songs and recording music inspired by there experiences with bullying.

These tracks are now complete, and a total of 24 songs have been compiled to make up the "Equaliser: Bullying Prevention" album. About 100 young people have taken part in the project.

An Equaliser album release party is scheduled to take place to celebrate the projects achievements. A free, all-ages music gig featuring live performances from a selection of those involved will take place on Saturday 24th May, between 8-11pm, at the Old St Johns Hall on Hardy Street, Nelson.

A total of 21 music workshops took place over a three week period across Motueka, Richmond and Nelson communities, where young people composed computer based beats and integrated their own bullying inspired lyrics to create songs.

Studio based recordings from up and coming youth bands and artists have also taken place with recordings surfacing from four Golden Bay artists under guidance from Levity Beet. Three bands and five solo artists on this side of the Takaka Hill spent time in the NMIT music studio.

Motueka-based project coordinator Paul Johnson is ecstatic by the quality of tracks that have been produced.

"The album covers a variety of musical genres, all tied together by the common theme that bullying is real, has real life implications, and needs to stopped," he says.

The album sleeve doubles as an educational resource, with important key messages about types of bullying, impact of bullying and where to go to for help.

The project is part of the Government initiated Te Punanga Haumaru campaign through Family and Community Services (FACS), which provides funding to support communities in developing strategies to address antisocial bullying behaviours. The project is coordinated and managed locally by SVS - Living Safe and Relationships Aotearoa.

To find out more on the project or to request a copy of the Equaliser album contact Paul Johnson on , or .

NEWS UPDATE (May 9): Equaliser has uploaded its tracks to the soundcloud. »

Comment by Maihi Barber:
[Posted 5 May 2014]

Great stuff Paul and team. Congratulations on the positive outcomes for our local communities - sounds like a wonderful contribution by our leaders of tomorrow. I look forward to listening to their creations.

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