Today is Earth Day and my hope is that we celebrate the beauty of this earth, even in the darkest moments. I thought it would be fun to create a video that shows how you appreciate this planet that we call home. The soundtrack is my cover of George Harrison's Beatles classic "Here Comes The Sun," which I released this morning. Thanks to everyone that contributed to the video. We received over 760 submissions and were able to squeeze in about 92 of them.

The cover came about when a friend asked me to record the song for a Nike China campaign which you can see on their website. The video only used about 1/3 of the song, but I ended up playing around and finishing it. 

As the sun starts to make more of a presence this time of year, it makes me feel a bit more hopeful and also appreciative of everything we have on this earth, even in troubled times. Much love and I hope we see each other soon!

Today I'm releasing the Live from Nest Recorders session on Bandcamp and donating 100% of the proceeds to the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund. The coronavirus has led to the cancellation of so many live events and this fund will assist people in the music industry who have been impacted by those cancellations. Whether it's a large arena or your local neighborhood bar, there are so many people working behind the scenes to make those concerts happen, and most of them are out of work because of COVID-19. Every dollar you contribute will go directly to them. Download it here.

One of my friends recently passed away after a long battle with cancer. He was so special to me and everyone who knew him, and even helped me build the backyard studio where I recorded the first SYML songs. I wrote "Flags" before he passed and started playing it on tour to cope with the loss. It’s been therapeutic and gutting. It’s not uncommon for people to come up to me after each show and share stories about cancer. The unfortunate fact is that almost everyone has one.

One of the stories that stuck with me was about a train in India. Patients who lacked access to treatment, due to expense or proximity, were taking an overnight "cancer train" to a government-run hospital where they could receive treatment. I couldn’t get the story out of my head. I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I'd never thought about the global experience of cancer, how people living in poverty deal with it, and how their environment may increase their chances of getting it. Which led to an idea.

I met a filmmaker named Sil Van Der Woerd at one of my concerts in Amsterdam. He's part of a team that creates music videos and short films with a goal of advocacy and awareness. So I went to them with this idea: would you go to India and capture part of the story that is the "cancer train?" That's how they met Sapna and her family. It's estimated that 90% of children diagnosed with cancer live in low-to-middle-income countries, like Sapna.

Jorik and the Studio Birthplace team were so taken by their time in India that they created a fund for Sapna and other patients like her. I hope that you'll join in their mission. A portion of every "Flags" sale, stream, and The Journey of Hope video view will be donated to their fund. You've already done a small part by clicking "play" on the video, but we'd invite you to learn more and make a direct donation here.

Couldn’t be more excited to share that I’ll be opening for Dermot Kennedy on his upcoming US tour. Sharing the stage with him will be an honor, as he is someone I respect and have listened to for a long time. This run hits a lot of my favorite cities as well as some new ones. We’ll see you soon, come through! The tour starts January 24th and runs until March 18th. You can get ticket links + see all of the cities below in the tour section.

P.S. I'm rescheduling the March shows in Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg. More on that soon.