The manufacturer of Chunks so adored by new-wave artists and performers, Converse is here again to pay tribute to music by launching a set of new initiatives focused on giving aspiring and acclaimed musicians from around the world a chance to demonstrate their moments of musical greatness to a wide audience. In India the brand is ‘hunting’ for the Original Band to give it a stage, in the U.S. the iconic shoe has launched a project dubbed Converse Rubber Tracks to open a free community-based recording studio in Brooklyn for the bands of different kinds of music ranging from punk to hip-hop to indie pop to rockabilly, and in the UK it is gathering renowned musicians for new creative collaborations.
The U.S. division of the brand is providing emerging and established performers to apply for a chance to record their songs in a high-quality studio for no cost. Converse will be accepting submissions soon, and now it is encouraging artists to come and register to get informed on when the whole thing starts. The brand will not ask public to decide which of the entrants are worth being given this life-changing opportunity—everything will be decided in Converse’s sole discretion, still there’s no doubt that it will make a right decision.
The winners’ downloadable tracks as well as the backstage videos and photos will be featured on www.Converse.com and other brand’s social media channels for a limited period of time. The whole cycle of professional recording and promoting of a new song—from rehearsal to releasing it on the web—will cost nothing for the musicians. “You create the music. We will help get the word out,” states the brand.
This July, Converse U.S. released the All Summer single created by three musicians (Kid Cudi, Rostam Batmanglij of Vampire Weekend and Bethany Cosentino of Best Coast) in the U.S. and now it’s continuing the tradition of several-artist collaboration oversees. On October 6, Converse UK released «Didn’t Know What Love Was,» the first of two tracks featuring Bernard Sumner from Bad Lieutenant, New Order and Joy Division, Alexis Taylor and Joe Goddard (Hot Chip) and Hot City, which now can be downloaded for free from www.converse.co.uk. This song will be followed by a video to be unveiled on November 2, and the launch of the second track, featuring Paloma Faith, Graham Coxon of Blur, and Bill Rider-Jones, formerly of the Coral, is stated for January.
«The U.K. music scene is recognized globally for its pioneering and unparalleled creative influence. We wanted to create a platform to celebrate this, from the icons of British music talent to the more emerging artists. We are extremely excited about what we have in store for the next 12 months for Converse fans worldwide,» said Geoff Cottrill, Chief Marketing Officer of Converse.